Hate crime in Salisbury: seven arrested under investigation

Seven Salisbury University students have been arrested and charged over an attack on a gay man by police investigation as a hate crime.

Salisbury police said the seven men, ages 18 to 20, used a social media account to invite a man to an apartment complex near the university “under false pretenses” on Oct. 15 and then attacked the man, who they said was targeted because of his sexual preferences.

The suspects have each been charged with first-degree assault, false imprisonment, reckless endangerment and related hate crime charges, police said in a statement. Facebook after.

However, the lawyer for one of the defendants, 18-year-old Zachary Leinemann, said the situation had nothing to do with the victim’s sexual orientation.

Attorney James L. Britt said the alleged victim is a man in his 40s who propositioned what he thought was a 16-year-old. “Once all the facts see the light of day, this case will be shown to be an ill-advised attempt to expose someone willing to travel to have sexual relations with a 16-year-old child,” he wrote in an email.

The Salisbury Police statement on the investigation and assault allegations said the victim was called “derogatory” names, spit on, kicked and punched for several minutes before being allowed to leave.

The victim, who is identified by name but not age in charging documents, told police he did not tell police about the attack because he was threatened and feared for his safety.

Police obtained cellphone video of the incident that showed the victim’s license plate number, which authorities were able to use to locate the victim, police said in charging documents.

The victim told police he was “lured” by Leinemann on Oct. 15 to an apartment in the 1400 block of University Terrace in Salisbury. The victim said he met Leinemann on the dating app Grindr and then spoke via text and Snapchat.

The victim said he traveled to the apartment to have sex, police said in charging documents.

“It should be noted that Leinemann identified himself as a 16-year-old, which was confirmed by (the victim) via messages,” an officer identified himself only as Cpl. Foy wrote in charging documents. Police were able to view video of the incident, Foy wrote.

Leinemann let the victim into the apartment and after the victim closed the door, he signaled about 15 other men to leave the apartment’s bedrooms, according to charging documents. The victim was then recorded being “assaulted and humiliated,” Foy wrote.

The victim was punched, punched, kicked, spit on, hit in the head multiple times with a cooking sheet, shot with a salt gun, doused with water and called names and other derogatory names, according to charging documents.

According to police, the victim repeatedly tried to flee the apartment but was thrown to the ground.

The victim told police he suffered a broken rib in the attack and believed he was targeted because he was gay.

The seven suspects are all students at Salisbury University, and some are members of a student association, the president of the school said in a statement. In addition to Leinemann of Crofton, they are: Ryder Baker, 20, of Olney; Bennan Aird, 18, of Milton, Delaware; Riley Brister, 20, of Davidsonville; Cruz Cespedes, 19, of Jarrettsville; Dylan Earp, 20, of Gambrills; and Elijah Johnson, 19, of Crofton.

Steven Rakow, an attorney representing Brister, told WJZ that his client plans to plead not guilty. “There is more to the story than what is being reported in the press,” Rakow said.

Court records show that all seven were released on their own recognizance and under electronic monitoring.

All but Leinemann do not have an attorney listed, and hearings are scheduled for early December. Leinemann has a trial scheduled for December 20.

In a letter to the Salisbury University community, President Carolyn Ringer Lepre said the right words elude her, and that words “seem inadequate to fully convey the weight of shock and disbelief we all share.”

She wrote that the university would not be able to share many details, citing an ongoing investigation, but said the school’s Office of Student Affairs would take “appropriate interim suspension measures.”

“The thought of SU students perpetuating any crime is disturbing, but the thought of SU students committing crimes of such a disturbing nature is truly heinous,” she wrote. “So let me be clear. We are angry about these allegations. I am angry about these allegations.”

Salisbury University, located on the east coast, issued a statement condemning the attack. “Any student who commits an act of violence may face criminal charges and disciplinary action under SU’s Student Code of Community Standards,” the university wrote. “The crimes described are in direct conflict with the values ​​of Salisbury University and what we stand for. There is no place for hate at SU.”

Police asked anyone with information to contact the department at 410-548-3165.

WJZ, media partner of The Baltimore Banner, contributed to this report.