No evidence of hate crime in killing of US transgender man, authorities say

<p>Five people charged with murder in Sam Nordquist’s death in upstate New York also identified as LGBTQ+, say officials</p><p>Authorities investigating the alleged <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/16/trans-man-new-york-five-charged-murder">torture and murder of Sam Nordquist</a> in upstate New York say they have found no evidence the transgender man’s killing was a hate crime, pointing out that five people recently charged in connection with the slaying also identified as LGBTQ+.</p><p>“We urge the community not to speculate into the motive behind the murder as we work to find justice for Sam,” authorities said over the weekend in a joint <a href="https://ny1.com/content/dam/News/static/pdfs/nys/Sam_Nordquist_Joint_Press_Release.pdf">press release</a> from the Ontario county district attorney’s office and New York state police. “At this time, we have no indication that Sam’s murder was a hate crime.”</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/18/sam-nordquist-killing-hate-crime">Continue reading...</a>