A confessed serial killer has been jailed in Pakistan.

Muhammed Ejaz killed three men, all of them gay, because "they were spreading evil in society and I had to stop it."

Ejaz seems to have committed the murders by luring the men into an encounter, having sex, sedating them, and then breaking their necks, actions he now regrets, saying, "My way was wrong." He still justified his behavior and hatred by claiming, "They are spreading evil and transmitting diseases. They cannot control themselves." His hatred for homosexuals appears to stem from severe internalized homophobia and self-hatred, traumas that were induced at the age of 10 when he was sexually abused by an older boy.

The NYT adds:

He is expected to face full charges in the coming days.

Speculation about the murders had been coursing through gay circles in Lahore since mid-March, when the first killing took place. “People are quite frightened,” said one gay man, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the law against homosexuality. “They feel both violated and exposed.”

Another man said there was speculation that the victims had been picked up on Grindr, another popular social networking website. “Some of my friends deleted their profiles because they were worried,” he said.

Mr. Ejaz denied police claims that he had had sex with his victims before killing them, claiming instead that sexual abuse he had suffered as a teenager had driven him to act.

There is now concern among the very closeted gay community of Pakistan that Ejaz's actions will be praised by conservative Muslims in the region, and an even greater fear that someone might be inspired to continue his murders.