Pakistani Man Admits to Killing Men to Warn About 'Evils' of Homosexuality

A Pakistani paramedic was arrested last week and admitted to killing three men, saying he wanted to send a message about the "evils" of homosexuality, the AFP reports.

The news of the killings shocked the underground LGBT community in Lahore, Pakistan, an eastern city and the capital of the province of Punjab. Some worry Muhammed Ejaz, a 28-year-old father of two, could be lauded as a hero in the conservative Muslim society of Pakistan, where homosexuality and sodomy is punishable up to 10 years in jail.

Ejaz's case will be heard in court Monday.

"The problem is that paedophilia and homosexuality are often conflated, so people think eradicating homosexuality means eradicating child abuse," a local activist said. The man also said Ejaz was also a "sexually active member of the gay community for several months," the AFP writes.

"It seems he was motivated by self-hatred and internalized homophobia," he said. "The worry is -- will it inspire others to do the same?"

Ejaz spoke with the AFP about the murders, saying he feels remorse but that he committed the crimes to stop evil.

"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," Ejaz, who is due to appear in court on Monday. "I wanted to warn them to stay away from this evil."

The killings occurred in March and April and police officer Asad Sarfraz, who is in charge of the investigation, said the victims were a middle-aged retired army major and two other men, both in their twenties. All victims were sedated and found with their necks broken.

Police, who say Ejaz had sex with his first victim, were able to find Ejaz by looking at mobile phone call logs.

Ejaz married in 2011 but says he is not gay and that his family was not aware of the killings.

"I started going on Manjam two months ago using my mobile phone, and found that the gays are everywhere in Lahore," he told the AFP, referring to a popular social networking website. "They are spreading evil and transmitting diseases. They cannot control themselves."

Ejaz admitted to the AFP that he was the victim of sexual abuse by an older boy when he was just 10. He says the incident led to a "deeply unhappy childhood," the AFP writes.

"I have hated them ever since what happened to me," he told the newspaper.