17-Year-Old Accused Of Killing Older Gay Man He Allegedly Targeted Via Dating App

A 17-year-old boy in Michigan was arrested and will be charged as an adult in the fatal stabbing of an older gay man whom the teen allegedly targeted because of his sexuality, Detroit police announced Tuesday.

The teen was charged with murder in the death of 64-year-old Howard Brisendine, according to a news release the Wayne County prosecutors’ office shared with HuffPost.

Prosecutors said the teen was just weeks away from turning 18 when he targeted Brisendine through an online dating app, according to the news release. Authorities said he went to Brisendine’s home in Detroit on Sept. 24 and stabbed the man, took his car keys and drove off in his vehicle.

Luis Mandujano, who owns Gigi’s, a gay nightclub where Brisendine worked as a doorman, told WDIV-TV in Detroit that he went to Brisendine’s house on Sept. 25 after he didn’t show up for work. Inside, Mandujano said he found Brisendine dead with multiple stab wounds and called police.

Brisendine’s brother, Harvey Brisendine, told WDIV that he believes the killing was a hate crime. When he went to identify the body, he could only recognize his brother by the tattoo on his arm because his “face was all black.”

The teen, who was also charged with taking Brisendine’s car, was taken into custody on Oct. 1.

Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a statement that it “is hard to fathom a more planned series of events in this case,” calling the details of the crime “heinous.”

“Unfortunately, the set of alleged facts are far too common in the LGBTQ community,” Worthy wrote. “We will bring justice to Mr. Brisendine.”

The Fair Michigan Justice Project, which assists prosecutors in homicide cases involving LGBTQ+ people, said in a statement that Brisendine’s killing “highlights the very real threats of deadly violence that LGTBQ individuals face every day.”

Prosecutors have not charged the teen with a hate crime, but Detroit Police Sgt. Rebecca McKay told WDIV that “there is some evidence that indicates that this could have been a hate crime.” Authorities did not immediately respond to questions from HuffPost about potential hate crime charges.

FBI data recently revealed that despite a decrease in violent crime across the U.S., hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community increased in 2023 . Many LGBTQ+ advocates attributed the violence to incendiary rhetoric from far-right politicians.

An attorney representing the teen did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment. He is next due in court on Oct. 15.

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