Nigeria: Queer Man’s Brutal Murder Highlights Rampant “Kito” Crisis

Nigeria’s LGBTIQ+ community is reeling after the brutal murder of a queer man who was lured by criminals posing as romantic partners before being beaten and thrown from a two-storey building.

According to multiple reports, the victim, identified as Hilary, was attacked in the city of Port Harcourt. He was taken to hospital but later died from severe spinal injuries.

The attack is believed to be a “kito” incident – a term used in Nigeria to describe the targeting of queer men on dating apps and social media platforms by criminals pretending to seek romantic connections.

Exploiting and Endangering Queer Lives

These perpetrators often assault, rob, kidnap and blackmail their victims, threatening to expose their sexuality to family or community members. It is a form of homophobic violence aimed at exploiting and controlling queer people.

Survivors of such attacks have little recourse to justice in Nigeria, where homosexuality remains criminalised. Reporting these crimes to the police often puts victims at risk of arrest themselves.

A Widespread Human Rights Crisis

The Initiative for Equal Rights (TIERs) documented 84 known kito cases in 2024, describing them as “the most consistent human rights violation perpetrated by non-state actors” against queer Nigerians.

The organisation reported that victims endured “sexual abuse, physical assault, torture, blackmail, invasion of privacy, degrading treatment and extortion.”

Gay British-Nigerian pastor Reverend Jide Macaulay said Hilary’s murder was the second reported kito-related death in just two weeks.

“Two beautiful souls gone because of hate, fear, and the failure of our society to protect its own,” said Macaulay on Instagram. “To Hilary, and to every queer person who has suffered in silence, we see you, we mourn you, and we stand with you.”

Community Outrage and Warnings

The killing has sparked outrage and grief across Nigerian social media, with dozens of queer individuals sharing their own kito experiences and warning others about dangerous individuals and fake profiles.

“Let’s post pictures of all the kitos we know. Most of them are community members, and people in the community actually know them. Pictures, locations, social media handles etc… They won’t have time to hurt us if they are busy trying not to be harmed first,” urged one user on X (formerly Twitter).

Another individual in Lagos warned: “There is a dangerous person targeting members of our community. This person deceives and traps gay men, often working with corrupt police officers.”

One user described a man who “lures his victims, keeps them hostage for days, rapes them with his friends, and extorts them.”

Criminalisation and State Complicity

Nigeria’s national laws, rooted in colonial-era legislation, impose a 14-year prison sentence on anyone convicted of consensual same-sex acts.

The 2014 Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act further criminalises same-sex marriages and relationships, with penalties of up to 14 years in prison. Public displays of same-sex affection or involvement in LGBTIQ+ organisations can lead to up to 10 years’ imprisonment.

In 12 northern states, Shari’a-based criminal laws also impose the death penalty for individuals found “guilty” of homosexuality.

Police have been known to publicly parade individuals arrested for homosexuality before the media and have reportedly used dating apps to entrap and blackmail queer Nigerians with threats of arrest and prosecution.