Another Gay Man Allegedly Attacked in West Hollywood

Brandon Akridge

Brandon Akerman believes he was drugged and then brutally assaulted on his way home from Mickey's bar in West Hollywood, Calif., last weekend.

Sunnivie Brydum

Sunnivie is the managing editor of The Advocate, and an award-winning journalist whose passion is covering the politics of equality and elevating the unheard stories of our community. Originally from Colorado, she and her spouse now live in Los Angeles, along with their three fur-children: dogs Luna and Cassie Doodle, and "Meow Button" Tilly.

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Sunnivie Brydum

May 28 2016 1:58 PM EST

March 13 2017 4:59 AM EST

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A 27-year-old gay man says he was drugged and assaulted after leaving a popular gay bar in West Hollywood, reports Los Angeles news station KNBC.

Brandon Akridge told KNBC that he only had two drinks at Mickey's before leaving the bar around 1:40 a.m. on May 21, but walking out the doors onto Santa Monica Blvd. is the last thing he remembers.

Akridge, who works as a barback at The Gold Coast Bar according to his Facebook profile, says he woke up in the intensive care unit of a local hospital, covered in bruises, with a laceration above his left eye, and intubated. He had no recollection of how he got there, but he's starting to piece together the early-morning attack.

"The doctor said when he did my blood test the things that showed up in my blood were consistent with date-rape drugs," Akerman told KNBC. "The reason they don't think I fell is there's no scrapes. It's all clean bruises on both sides all the way down my body."

Akerman is unsure whether the attack was a hate crime, and has yet to report the assault to police, though he has set up a GoFundMe page to help cover his medical expenses.