A court in Kenya has affirmed the rights of LGBTQ+ people to protection under the law after jailing two criminals for blackmailing and robbing two gay men targeted through Facebook.
The survivors were lured into meeting one of the perpetrators through the social networking site in May 2023. When they arrived at the man’s house, three other individuals burst in.
The victims, both in their twenties, were held hostage for hours. During the ordeal, the attackers threatened to stab and assault them and robbed them of their phones and wallets.
Under the threat of being outed, the victims were forced to ask family and friends to transfer money into their accounts. The robbers then emptied the accounts before releasing them.
The LGBTIQ community organisation Ishtar, together with the National Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC), assisted the victims in reporting the case and provided ongoing support throughout the trial.
Last year, the criminals – Abel Meli and another – were found guilty of robbery with violence arising from acts of blackmail, extortion and assault. On 3 March 2026, the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi sentenced the men to 15 years in prison for the attack.
The ruling is significant in a country where same-sex intimacy remains a jailable offence under colonial-era laws and LGBTQ identities are heavily stigmatised. This climate fuels blackmail and extortion and often discourages victims from reporting crimes.
“The court’s decision reinforces a fundamental principle: violence and exploitation will not go unpunished, and justice applies to all, without exception,” said Ishtar in a statement. “It also sends a strong signal that community-based legal responses are vital to holding perpetrators accountable.”
The organisation called on community members to remain vigilant when using dating apps and digital platforms, where it said “risks of manipulation and exploitation persist.”
NGLHRC also welcomed the judgment as an affirmation that exploitation and violence are punishable regardless of the victims, and that the law “enables vulnerable communities to seek justice without fear of exploitation.”
One of the survivors urged victims of queer online dating attacks not to stay silent. “If you have been blackmailed, don’t be afraid. There is justice, go to the police station. No one has the right to abuse you or do anything,” he told The Guardian.
The targeting of queer individuals by criminals through dating apps and other online platforms is widespread in many parts of Africa, in some cases allegedly with the support of the police. This ruling sends a powerful message that survivors can fight back and seek justice under the law.
