Federal authorities accused a 19-year-old Louisiana man of a hate crime on Thursday after he allegedly used Grindr to lure gays to a property with the aim of killing them and dismembering their bodies.
Chance Seneca de Lafayette was arrested in June 2020 after officials said he was able to strangle and stab a victim, Holden White, before changing his mind and calling the police.
According to a criminal complaint, White was found in a bathtub with his wrists cut to the bone and strangulation marks around his neck, which had also been stabbed. Police also said they found a knife, an ice pick, a saw and a hammer in the bathroom.
Seneca reportedly told the FBI that she met White on Grindr before communicating with him on Snapchat. Seneca is said to have told authorities that he saw the gay social media app as a “hunting ground”.
He invited White to his father’s home on June 20 with the intention of killing and dismembering him. Seneca said he kept White at gunpoint, handcuffed him, strangled him until he passed out, took off his clothes and started cutting him.
“Seneca explained that he hoped to remove and preserve White’s hands, but that he was unable to finish his plan after seeing the bones of White’s wrists exposed under his flesh,” the complaint said.
In their indictment, prosecutors said Seneca wanted to keep the body parts as “souvenirs, trophies and food”.
White spent three days in a coma at a local hospital before waking up.
In January, he told Acadiana Advocate that he remembered briefly regaining consciousness while in the bathtub during the attack.
“He was just looking at me with an expression of fear on his face, like ‘Did I just do this?’ look, “said White. “I was lying in the bathtub, naked, bleeding, the water red and cold, and I remember thinking, ‘Well, that’s it’.”
The federal prosecution also claimed that Seneca had kidnapped a second man and tried to kidnap a third man the day before. The men were not named in the indictment.
Lafayette police initially refused to proceed with the hate crime charges against Seneca, saying there was insufficient evidence. The authorities then reversed the course in January.
Seneca now faces six federal charges, including hate crimes, kidnapping, firearms and obstruction charges – the last because he allegedly deleted his messages from Grindr with White before speaking to the police.
No lawyer was listed for Seneca in a federal court database. He faces life in prison if convicted.
White told Acadiana Advocate in January that he expected Seneca to be charged with a hate crime.
“He chose to do something for someone who is gay and is proud of his sexuality,” said White.
“The only time I was a victim was when I was in a three-day coma,” White added. “I came out of this as a stronger person. I survived. I am a survivor.”