Palm Springs police arrest gay dating app predator

Police announced the arrest of Hakan sik on ednesday as a result of an ongoing criminal investigation into the sexual assault of multiple men he had met via online dating apps by Palm Springs Police epartment PSP detectives.

sik, , a resident of esert Hot Springs and the primary suspect in the case, was taken into custody by PSP and later transferred to the iverside County Larry n an interview with the Los Angeles lade, Snell said “ e started making out and that didn’t go on for very long. He turned me away from him and felt the rush of drugs going into me t only took a few minutes for me to lose control.” According to Snell, he remembered going in and out of consciousness and that he was raped, burned, beat, bitten and kicked.

. Smith Correctional acility in anning, Calif. etectives established probable cause to arrest sik and he was charged with PC a A Penetration with a foreign ob ect PC a Sodomy PC b Elder Abuse PC alse mprisonment and PC Administer a drug to commit a felony.

The case had been opened in January after PSP investigators received initial sexual assault information from one of the victims, and Snell, who was hospitali ed after his online hookup with sik, who he said allegedly anally in ected him with methamphetamine without his consent and then violently sexually assaulted him.

He was later taken to the esert egional edical Center on North ndian Canyon rive in Palm Springs. Snell told the lade that days after being attacked, he posted images about his story on his personal acebook page and was immediately contacted by two others who had also been attacked.

Lieutenant ustavo . Arai a, a spokesperson for the PSP , told the lade ednesday that during the investigation, detectives spoke with other individuals who shared similar experiences as mentioned by the victim. Their encounters did not rise to a level of criminality but supported the initial investigation.

Arai a also told the lade that investigating sexual assault cases can take time “as it re uires the meticulous examination of evidence, collection of witness statements, medical records, and collaboration with various parties involved. nvestigators have pursued available leads and conducted multiple interviews with individuals who came forward in response to the victim’s online account.”

There had been some mounting frustration within the Palm Springs gay community over what was perceived as a slow response by law enforcement to the ongoing alleged criminal sexual activities by the suspect.

A member of a Palm Springs gay men’s acebook community who has spoken out about the attacks told the lade that while some victims are willing to step up, others see inaction from the PSP as a disincentive on telling their story and coming forward.

“ ’ve talked to many of them and there’s one common factor in all their cases,” he said. “ t takes weeks to recover from their physical in uries and even longer to process the shock of what happened to them. eelings of shame and embarrassment naturally go along with trauma.”

“ t’s not unlike the eToo stories,” he told the lade.

“ ith the risks associated with app dating in mind, the Palm Springs Police epartment is updating the public regarding this ongoing sexual assault investigation,” Lieutenant Arai a said. “The initial sexual assault case, brought to our attention in January, continues to be investigated as additional people and information become available. The primary goal of this investigative process is to conduct a thorough and unbiased investigation while ensuring the integrity of the case,” he added.

A recent study by researchers of online dating apps at righam oung niversity reported that of , cases resulted in sexual assaults. n a third of those cases, the victims were strangled and suffered more in ury than other sexual assault victims. The assaults tended to occur on the first in-person meeting. App ating

According to the ape and ncest National Network A NN every seconds, an American is sexually assaulted. n a recent National Crime ictims Survey, the results indicated that police agencies reali e many sexual assaults go unreported.

“Let’s be clear no means no egardless of the type or length of the relationship or sexual orientation, all activities must stop immediately when a person says stop. f a person cannot say no, then the answer is still no,” Lieutenant Arai a said. “ sing illegal substances, overtly or covertly, to victimi e an individual is inexcusable, and police will do all within their power to bring ustice to those who victimi e others through intoxication.” n an email to the lade ednesday afternoon, and Snell said

“ ’m glad that Palm Springs is a safer place tonight, although ’m sorry for the others Hakan sik victimi ed before and after my assault. hope that in the next few days others will be more willing to come forward.”

“ talked today with someone victimi ed a month ago, who ust reached out to the police today. He is the sixth person am aware of, who were victimi ed by sik.”

“Although this took much longer than had hoped, the arrest does show it’s worth it to report sexual and physical assaults. t doesn’t matter the circumstances, what you might have been doing. No one deserves to be raped and beat up.”

“ ou can withdraw consent. And once you do, anything after that is sexual assault.”

“Hakan ski is a sociopathic sexual predator. The community is safer with him behind bars.”

Lieutenant Arai a noted that the investigation is ongoing telling the lade “ n order to safeguard the integrity of the case and uphold the rights of all parties involved, we are unable to disclose further details related to the case.”

TROY MASTERS & BRODY LEVESQUE