Kidnapper Targeted Gay Men on Grindr to Kill and Dismember Them
A man who kidnapped a gay man he met through Grindr and Snapchat in a plot to murder and dismember him pleaded guilty to kidnapping on Thursday.
The kidnapper, Chance Seneca, met his intended victim in Louisiana in June 2020, according to the plea bargain in the case. Seneca allegedly convinced the victim, referred to in court documents as “H.W.,” to put on handcuffs for sex, then used a belt to strangle him until he passed out.
Seneca then put H.W. in a bathtub, stripped him naked, hit him with a hammer, stabbed him in the neck with an ice pick, and slit his wrists with a knife, according to the plea bargain. Seneca was trying to “satisfy his homicidal urges,” per the bargain.
Seneca had planned to dismember H.W., according to the plea bargain. But instead, he called 911 and told the dispatcher that he was responsible for strangling someone. The police arrested Seneca, who told them that he originally wanted to keep H.W.’s body parts.
H.W. wasn’t the first gay man that Seneca said he had planned to kill, according to the plea bargain. The day before meeting up with H.W., Seneca allegedly used Grindr and Snapchat to lure another gay man, but ultimately changed his mind and let him go.
Seneca had “planned to continue murdering until he was caught or killed,” according to the plea bargain.
“I’ve never really wanted to hurt… women,” Seneca told law enforcement. “It’s mostly just men.”
H.W. survived Seneca’s attack, but spent three days in a coma. The tendons in his wrists were damaged and severed, and he had permanent nerve damage in one hand.
In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke called Seneca’s actions “shocking.”
“The internet should be accessible and safe for all Americans, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation,” Clarke said. “The Justice Department will continue to identify and hold accountable anyone who uses online spaces as a means to terrorize or abuse others.”
Seneca, who is set to be sentenced in January 2023, faces the prospect of life in prison. He could face further consequences if a court decides he targeted H.W. because of his gender or sexual orientation.
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Carter Sherman, Khareem Sudlow
