Man charged for allegedly drugging, robbing and blackmailing date in Miami apartment – NBC 6 South Florida

Miami Police are sharing a warning after a man said he was drugged, robbed and blackmailed in his own apartment.

According to an arrest report, the incident happened on Sept. 29. The victim said that he met the suspect on LGBTQ dating app Grindr, and invited the suspect to his apartment on NE 7th Avenue.

“The victim stated that once the defendant arrived, they began to drink alcoholic beverages that [the] defendant had made,” authorities wrote in the arrest report. “The victim stated that he noticed that the drink tasted bitter. The victim stated that shortly after, he became disoriented and eventually went unconscious.”

Approximately three hours later, police said that the victim woke up to find that the suspect had disappeared with thousands of dollars’ worth of stolen belongings.

The suspect had also allegedly left a note, stating, “If you so much as talk about this morning…I will ruin your life.” The victim advised that several of his bank accounts, email and phone accounts were hacked and had been tampered with.

With the help of surveillance video and images of the alleged offender, authorities tracked down Gabriel Luciano, 32.

“We were able to locate him through pictures and identify him,” Miami Police Department Public Information Officer Mike Vega said.

Luciano appeared before a judge Wednesday, but has since been released from jail after posting bail.

NBC6’s sister station Telemundo51 reached out to Grindr for comment on this incident, but has not received a response.

“He has now been arrested for extortion and for grand theft robbery,” Vega said. “This is something that we talk about all the time. If you don’t know who you’re inviting home, do not accept a drink from that person. Do not drink a drink that you didn’t prepare yourself.”