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Pakistani killer murdered three gay men he met online by breaking their necks after having sex with them ‘to stop them spreading the evil of homosexuality’.
Muhammed Ejaz, 28, confessed to killing the three men he met online. Members of the gay community are worried he will be seen as a hero in Pakistan's conservative Islamic society. Ejaz has expressed regret for the murders but claims he was doing it to prevent wrongdoing
By SAM CREIGHTON
The case of Muhammed Ejaz, the Pakistani paramedic who murdered three gay men he met online - has sent shockwaves through the country's already persecuted gay community.
Ejaz, a 28-year-old father-of-two, was arrested last week and confessed to three brutal murders, saying he wanted to send a message about the 'evils' of homosexuality, though police insist he had sex with his victims first.
The killings have sent shockwaves through the underground gay community in the eastern city of Lahore, which fears Ejaz could be lionised as a hero in a conservative Islamic society where homosexuality is stigmatised and sodomy is punishable by up to 10 years in jail.
In an interview with AFP from his prison cell Sunday night, Ejaz expressed remorse over the killings but said he was acting to stop wrongdoing.
'My way was wrong. It is tragic that the families have lost their relatives but they were spreading evil in society and I had to stop it,' said Ejaz, who is due to appear in court on Monday.
'I wanted to warn them to stay away from this evil.'
The killings happened in March and April, according to police officer Asad Sarfraz, who headed the investigation. The victims were a middle-aged retired army Major and two other men, both in their twenties.
All three were found with their necks broken and had been sedated.
After examining their mobile phone call logs, police were able to identify Ejaz's number and found another former lover whom they used to lure him to a meeting a week ago, where they arrested him.
Ejaz, who married in 2011 and has two infant children, said his family knew nothing of what he had done and insisted that he was not gay himself.
'I started going on Manjam two months ago using my mobile phone, and found that the gays are everywhere in Lahore,' he said, referring to a popular social networking website.
'They are spreading evil and transmitting diseases. They cannot control themselves,' he added.
Ejaz said he was the victim of sexual abuse by an older boy when he was around 10 and had led a deeply unhappy childhood.
'I have hated them ever since for what happened to me,' he said.
A court in Lahore remanded Ejaz in custody at a hearing last Monday.
Source: Pakistani killer murdered 3 gay men after having sex with them
Muhammed Ejaz, 28, confessed to killing the three men he met online. Members of the gay community are worried he will be seen as a hero in Pakistan's conservative Islamic society. Ejaz has expressed regret for the murders but claims he was doing it to prevent wrongdoing
By SAM CREIGHTON
The case of Muhammed Ejaz, the Pakistani paramedic who murdered three gay men he met online - has sent shockwaves through the country's already persecuted gay community.
Ejaz, a 28-year-old father-of-two, was arrested last week and confessed to three brutal murders, saying he wanted to send a message about the 'evils' of homosexuality, though police insist he had sex with his victims first.
The killings have sent shockwaves through the underground gay community in the eastern city of Lahore, which fears Ejaz could be lionised as a hero in a conservative Islamic society where homosexuality is stigmatised and sodomy is punishable by up to 10 years in jail.
In an interview with AFP from his prison cell Sunday night, Ejaz expressed remorse over the killings but said he was acting to stop wrongdoing.
'My way was wrong. It is tragic that the families have lost their relatives but they were spreading evil in society and I had to stop it,' said Ejaz, who is due to appear in court on Monday.
'I wanted to warn them to stay away from this evil.'
The killings happened in March and April, according to police officer Asad Sarfraz, who headed the investigation. The victims were a middle-aged retired army Major and two other men, both in their twenties.
All three were found with their necks broken and had been sedated.
After examining their mobile phone call logs, police were able to identify Ejaz's number and found another former lover whom they used to lure him to a meeting a week ago, where they arrested him.
Ejaz, who married in 2011 and has two infant children, said his family knew nothing of what he had done and insisted that he was not gay himself.
'I started going on Manjam two months ago using my mobile phone, and found that the gays are everywhere in Lahore,' he said, referring to a popular social networking website.
'They are spreading evil and transmitting diseases. They cannot control themselves,' he added.
Ejaz said he was the victim of sexual abuse by an older boy when he was around 10 and had led a deeply unhappy childhood.
'I have hated them ever since for what happened to me,' he said.
A court in Lahore remanded Ejaz in custody at a hearing last Monday.
Source: Pakistani killer murdered 3 gay men after having sex with them
