RAMAPO – A Monsey resident and a Queens man have been accused of using a dating app to lure two men to a local park, where Ramapo police charge they robbed them.
The two 19-year-olds — Jacob Sprei of Monsey and Aaron Rosenkranz of Flushing in Queens — face multiple felony criminal charges resulting from the separate incidents on May 7 and June 19, Detective Lt. Chris Franklin said.
Several of the gun-point robbery and other counts were elevated to hate crimes based on one victim being taunted with homosexual slurs, Franklin said.
Sprei and Rosenkranz are accused of possessing a weapon during the robberies and stealing property and personal items from the men, Franklin said.
Grindr used to lure men to Wesley Hills park
Rosenkranz and Sprie used the dating app Grindr to set up meetings with the two males at the Greg Sikorsky Children’s Park in Wesley Hills during the late evening and early morning hours on the two days, Frankin said. The dating app, he said, is primarily used by the LGBTQ+ community.
The Ramapo Police Investigations Division detectives suspect others may have been victimized and should contact Detectives Matt Murphy or Detective Jonathan Quinn at 845-357-2400.
Rosenkranz and Sprie were released from the Rockland County jail in New City after each posted $50,000 bail set by Wesley Hills Justice Philip Schnelwar.
Rosenkranz and Sprie were charged with more than a dozen felony criminal charges and misdemeanors, including robbery as a hate crime, unlawful imprisonment as a hate crime and multiple counts of criminal possession of stolen property and of a weapon.
Steve Lieberman covers government, breaking news, courts, police, and investigations. Reach him at slieberm@lohud.com Twitter: @lohudlegal. Read more articles and bio. Our local coverage is only possible with support from our readers.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Men lured 2 victims to Wesley Hills park using Grindr, then robbed them
Reporting by Steve Lieberman, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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