The*Empress
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That is bad... I sorry for hurting gay people in here... I didn't
think anybody would attack gay people... I thought only blacks people
get attack. It happened today???
Police fear anti-gay killers may strike again
· Hunt on for two men who beat victim on way home
· Gay community urged to report previous attacks
Vikram Dodd
Monday October 17, 2005
The Guardian
Police were last night hunting two men believed to have beaten a man to death in a homophobic attack. They fear the suspected killers may strike again.
Jody Drobrowski, 24, was chased and set upon on Clapham Common, south London. The young bar manager from south-east London died on Saturday after a vicious and sustained attack.
He had been subjected to a "frenzied" assault in a wooded area on the common, which is a popular cruising spot for gay men. Anti-gay abuse was shouted by the suspected killers during the attack.
Detective Chief Inspector Nick Scola said Mr Drobrowski had suffered severe head, neck and facial injuries, and experienced officers had been shocked by the severity of his injuries. "He was the victim of a sustained and violent assault," he said. Yesterday police forensic experts were scouring some 1.5 hectares (4 acres) of the common.
Mr Drobrowski may have been chased before being knocked to the ground, where his attackers rained kicks and punches on him. They ran off after being disturbed. He was taken to hospital, but died from the injuries he had suffered.
Police appealed for people to come forward with homophobic incidents they may not previously have reported. DCI Scola said the ferocity of the attack led him to believe that the attackers may have targeted gay or lesbian people before. "It would be unusual to use this level of violence in your first attack," he said.
Mr Drobrowski was set upon late on Friday. He had been visiting friends in the Clapham area, where he used to live, and left them at 10.15pm. Police were called just after midnight and detectives are trying to trace where he was in the intervening hour and three-quarters.
Mr Drobrowski, who was British, was 6ft 4in tall and wearing a black hooded top. His attackers are both white. One was 6ft, with short shaved hair. The other was shorter and stockier. Witnesses described them as having shouted anti-gay abuse during the attack. "Those who carried out the attack perceived he was gay," said DCI Scola.
Police warned that the attackers might strike again. As part of their investigation they are examining previous homophobic attacks in the area. One such incident was an attempt to garrotte a man on Clapham Common several weeks ago. The victim, who had a military background, was able to escape.
Bob Hodgson, an adviser to the Metropolitan police on gay issues, said there were five or six homophobic murders in London every year. He appealed to anyone who had been on the common on Friday night to set aside any distrust of the police and come forward. "The police are going to be interested in solving this terrible murder and not what you were doing on Clapham Common."
Mr Hodgson said the attackers might strike again. "Homophobic attacks like this are carried out by people who have got a hatred of gay people and are likely to do it again."
He said police attitudes to hate crime against gay and lesbian people were patchy but better than they used to be. He added that homophobic attacks were hugely under-reported, with police being told of only one in 10.
Late yesterday, police sealed off a hotel 600 metres from the crime scene after traces of blood were found.
In 1999 the then Welsh secretary Ron Davies left the Cabinet after a gay encounter on Clapham Common, which ended in him being robbed.
Chris Broda, the duty manager of Kazbar, a nearby gay bar, said there had been an increase in anti-gay incidents in the area over the past four months. In the bar yesterday messages were flashed on a video screen and police posters were displayed on the walls, urging people to report hate crimes.
Mr Broda said officers had visited the bar just last week as part of a continuing effort to build trust. He added that a man was recently attacked at a nearby gay pub by men who shouted "fucking poof" at him as he left.
In the Kazbar yesterday Geoffrey Read, 57, said he had been visiting the wooded area on Clapham Common for 30 years without any problems. "You can go there day and night to meet people for sex. You see people sunbathing in the shade in a provocative position," he said. "I've been there when I've been sober and when I've been drunk and have not had a problem."
Tom Murtagh said: "99.9% of the time it is safe. Most guys who go there are aware of what they're doing. They do it to have sex and to have a nice time. I am surprised to hear there's been a gay murder on the common. But you'll never stop guys going there cruising or trolling. They may leave it alone for a few weeks and then they'll do it again."
DCI Scola said his investigation team included gay officers and anyone with information could ask to speak to them if that would make them more comfortable.
A 2001 study for the Metropolitan police and the Home Office found that only one in five homophobic incidents was reported to the police. Reasons people gave for not telling officers included a belief that the incident was not serious enough, a fear that police would not act, concern that police would react negatively, and a fear of being treated as a perpetrator rather than a victim.
think anybody would attack gay people... I thought only blacks people
get attack. It happened today???
Police fear anti-gay killers may strike again
· Hunt on for two men who beat victim on way home
· Gay community urged to report previous attacks
Vikram Dodd
Monday October 17, 2005
The Guardian
Police were last night hunting two men believed to have beaten a man to death in a homophobic attack. They fear the suspected killers may strike again.
Jody Drobrowski, 24, was chased and set upon on Clapham Common, south London. The young bar manager from south-east London died on Saturday after a vicious and sustained attack.
He had been subjected to a "frenzied" assault in a wooded area on the common, which is a popular cruising spot for gay men. Anti-gay abuse was shouted by the suspected killers during the attack.
Detective Chief Inspector Nick Scola said Mr Drobrowski had suffered severe head, neck and facial injuries, and experienced officers had been shocked by the severity of his injuries. "He was the victim of a sustained and violent assault," he said. Yesterday police forensic experts were scouring some 1.5 hectares (4 acres) of the common.
Mr Drobrowski may have been chased before being knocked to the ground, where his attackers rained kicks and punches on him. They ran off after being disturbed. He was taken to hospital, but died from the injuries he had suffered.
Police appealed for people to come forward with homophobic incidents they may not previously have reported. DCI Scola said the ferocity of the attack led him to believe that the attackers may have targeted gay or lesbian people before. "It would be unusual to use this level of violence in your first attack," he said.
Mr Drobrowski was set upon late on Friday. He had been visiting friends in the Clapham area, where he used to live, and left them at 10.15pm. Police were called just after midnight and detectives are trying to trace where he was in the intervening hour and three-quarters.
Mr Drobrowski, who was British, was 6ft 4in tall and wearing a black hooded top. His attackers are both white. One was 6ft, with short shaved hair. The other was shorter and stockier. Witnesses described them as having shouted anti-gay abuse during the attack. "Those who carried out the attack perceived he was gay," said DCI Scola.
Police warned that the attackers might strike again. As part of their investigation they are examining previous homophobic attacks in the area. One such incident was an attempt to garrotte a man on Clapham Common several weeks ago. The victim, who had a military background, was able to escape.
Bob Hodgson, an adviser to the Metropolitan police on gay issues, said there were five or six homophobic murders in London every year. He appealed to anyone who had been on the common on Friday night to set aside any distrust of the police and come forward. "The police are going to be interested in solving this terrible murder and not what you were doing on Clapham Common."
Mr Hodgson said the attackers might strike again. "Homophobic attacks like this are carried out by people who have got a hatred of gay people and are likely to do it again."
He said police attitudes to hate crime against gay and lesbian people were patchy but better than they used to be. He added that homophobic attacks were hugely under-reported, with police being told of only one in 10.
Late yesterday, police sealed off a hotel 600 metres from the crime scene after traces of blood were found.
In 1999 the then Welsh secretary Ron Davies left the Cabinet after a gay encounter on Clapham Common, which ended in him being robbed.
Chris Broda, the duty manager of Kazbar, a nearby gay bar, said there had been an increase in anti-gay incidents in the area over the past four months. In the bar yesterday messages were flashed on a video screen and police posters were displayed on the walls, urging people to report hate crimes.
Mr Broda said officers had visited the bar just last week as part of a continuing effort to build trust. He added that a man was recently attacked at a nearby gay pub by men who shouted "fucking poof" at him as he left.
In the Kazbar yesterday Geoffrey Read, 57, said he had been visiting the wooded area on Clapham Common for 30 years without any problems. "You can go there day and night to meet people for sex. You see people sunbathing in the shade in a provocative position," he said. "I've been there when I've been sober and when I've been drunk and have not had a problem."
Tom Murtagh said: "99.9% of the time it is safe. Most guys who go there are aware of what they're doing. They do it to have sex and to have a nice time. I am surprised to hear there's been a gay murder on the common. But you'll never stop guys going there cruising or trolling. They may leave it alone for a few weeks and then they'll do it again."
DCI Scola said his investigation team included gay officers and anyone with information could ask to speak to them if that would make them more comfortable.
A 2001 study for the Metropolitan police and the Home Office found that only one in five homophobic incidents was reported to the police. Reasons people gave for not telling officers included a belief that the incident was not serious enough, a fear that police would not act, concern that police would react negatively, and a fear of being treated as a perpetrator rather than a victim.
