Two Queer Men Brutally Killed in Two Days, Suspect Arrested

A man was arrested Wednesday in connection with the murders of two men in Sligo, Ireland, earlier this week.

Yousef Palani, 22, also of Sligo, has been accused by authorities of killing Aldan Moffitt, 42, and Michael Snee, 58, according to the BBC.

He has also been charged with assaulting another man last week.

Snee's body was found at his home on Tuesday. Moffitt's remains were discovered the day prior. The men lived a short distance from each other.

Irish police told the BBC both men had sustained "significant" injuries before their deaths.

People gathered outside the courtroom on Thursday yelling at Palani as the prison van he was in arrived for a court hearing. Members of the public then hit the van as it left court. Palani has been detained until his next court appearance on April 21.

The killings have shocked the Irish community. Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin wrote on Twitter Wednesday, "My deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Aidan Moffitt. Deeply concerned by this horrific killing and reports of another violent death in Sligo this morning."

"The LGBTI+ community has the right to feel and be safe on our streets and online," Paula Fagan, CEO of LGBT Ireland, told The Irish Examiner earlier this week. "We fear that many more people do not report hate incidents to us or to the Gardai [Irish police], due to the normalization of homophobia and transphobia in society."

Police have previously indicated that Palani may have met the men over a dating app. It's caused some Irish LGBTQ+ groups to caution users of the apps to be careful when meeting people for the first time.

Sligo Pride, which organized a vigil for the men on Friday, wrote on Twitter, "If you are meeting someone online in person for the first time, give a trusted friend as much information on this other person as you can and let your friend know where you are. We understand the worries and concerns at this time."