Gilbert Ignatius had been living a luxurious lifestyle in Doha and enjoying his high-flying career until Qatari authorities began to question his extravagant ways.
Ignatius, 32, was celebrating his birthday with friends in May 2023 at a restaurant at The DoubleTree by Hilton in Doha. He had worked as a flight attendant for Qatar Airways for six years.
A security guard informed the group that they were being watched by the Criminal Investigation Department of the national police.
The group was escorted to a room near the hotel's entrance, according to a report from the LGBTQ+ media outlet Advocacy.
It was discovered that Ignatius and a few of his companions had been wearing tinted moisturizer when the officers used wet wipes to remove makeup from their faces.
After seizing their identity cards and cell phones, the officers brought them to a police station.
Ignatius was questioned about his lifestyle during the interrogation, specifically how he managed to pay for designer clothes, accessories, and bags while working as a flight attendant.
Ignatius claims that the officers asked him how much money he made every night after accusing him of being a sex worker.
Ignatius disclosed to Business Insider that he was educated at South Metropolitan TAFE in Perth, Australia and that he was born into an affluent family in Indonesia.
Ignatius said he was smacked in the face by the officers when he revealed that he had bought the opulent items before joining Qatar Airways.
After that, Ignatius was freed and was able to get back to the lodging that the company had given him right before the flight attendants' 04:00 curfew on Qatar Airlines.
Ignatius claimed the next day that his passport had been seized by the airline and that he had been told he could not leave his accommodation. Then, he had three days to gather his belongings and fly back to Indonesia. On June 4, 2023, Ignatius was finally let go from the company.
Ignatius, a flight attendant for Jetstar who is currently stationed in Indonesia, claimed that the experience had left him traumatized and that the emotional strain of it prompted him to seek counseling.
Human Rights Watch claims that in 2022, just before the FIFA World Cup, Preventive Security Department personnel in Qatar "arbitrarily" detained LGBT people. Arrested individuals faced solitary confinement, detention without formal charges, and denial of access to legal counsel.
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