COLUMBUS – A 27-year-old Southeast Side man may be charged with a hate crime for allegedly threatening on an online dating app to kill members of the LGBTQ community.
SUSPECT ARRESTED FOR LGBT DEATH THREATS: 27yo Me'Shach Israel-Miller was arrested last night at his SE Columbus home & charged w/inducing panic & aggravated manacing for making threats on @Grindr directed towards the LGBTQ community. Hate crime charges could follow. #CPD pic.twitter.com/jWFCfnYR6V
— Columbus Division of Police (@ColumbusPolice) March 7, 2018
Me’Shach Israel-Miller was arrested Tuesday night at his home and charged with inducing panic and aggravated menacing for posting a threat on the social networking app Grindr on March 1, claiming he planned to kill another user and 85 other people, describing them with an epithet, according to Sgt. Nick Konves, the Columbus Division of Police Diversity/Inclusion Liaison officer.
The victim posted screen shots of the threat, causing it to go viral and police began to investigate and additional officers were assigned to patrol duties in the Short North area over the weekend, Konves said.
Konves says he will ask the office of Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien to consider treating the incident as a hate crime.