Teen tortured, strangled and left for dead naked in bathtub with hands nearly SAWED OFF in brutal attack by Grindr date
A TEEN was tortured, strangled and left for dead naked in a bathtub with his hands nearly sawn off in a monstrous attack by a Grindr date.
Holden White was tortured until his attacker believed he was dead after the pair met up through the gay dating app Grindr on June 20, 2020.
The 18-year-old from Lafayette, Louisiana, suffered six stab wounds to the neck, a blow to the back of his head and deep cuts to his wrist after meeting up for a first date with 19-year-old Chance Seneca.
The pair had spoken on Grindr for over a month before deciding to meet in person.
Recalling the harrowing events, Holden said there were no red flags at first.
Holden told CBS17: “Everything seemed fine. Nothing seemed weird, and we decided after a month of talking we should like to meet.”
Seneca picked up Holden for the date last June and the pair went over to his house where they started playing video games in the 19-year-old’s bedroom.
But events rapidly changed when Seneca left the room to fetch something.
When he returned, Holden found himself fighting for his life as his attacker strangled him from behind with a cord.
The teen struggled until every blood vessel in his face ruptured before his vision and memory blacked out.
As Holden came to, he found himself naked in a bathtub.
Holden said: “The next thing I remember I was in the bathtub, and he was slicing open my left wrist.”
Surrounded by his own blood, Holden faded in and out of consciousness while his attacker watched.
Holden recalled: “I was saying my final words to myself which were just, ‘Stay calm.’”
As Holden lost consciousness again, his attacker called the police, telling them he had killed a man.
But Holden was still alive.
The teen was rushed to hospital where he fell into a coma for three days.
He remembers waking up in hospital with a breathing tube in his throat and bandages swathing much of his body.
As well as appalling injuries to his neck and head, Holden’s wrists had been cut so deeply his hands were nearly sawn off.
Two days after he woke, Holden was questioned by Lafayette Police about what had happened.
No rape kit was provided as Holden recovered from his horrific injuries.
Holden remained in hospital for nearly a month – but the young man was determined to recover.
Just three weeks after leaving the hospital, the teen returned to his work – but had to leave soon after because of his hands.
Holden has since regained the full function of his right hand.
His left hand remains partially numb.
Now, seven months after the horrific attack, Holden – an openly gay young man – is pressing for hate crime charges.
Holden wants to share his harrowing experiences so that no one else has to endure a similar encounter.
The teen has made it his mission to move on from the disturbing attempt on his life – and to make sure the man responsible will never be able to attack another gay man.
White told News 10: “You can’t let other people control your story because it’s your story.”
The courageous young man added: “My one goal that I would say would be to yes keep him in prison, and then number two, to let everyone know if you have a traumatic experience happen to you, it’s okay to be sad about it but you need to not stay sad the whole time.
“You have to move on.”
White plans to move on by continuing to use Grindr for dating – but only in public places now.
And last week, Holden started his first new job since the attack.
Holden feels he deserved more answers from police as to what happened, but says he won’t receive any additional details until he hears them in court.
White says the FBI is investigating the accusation of hate crimes against Seneca, who will appear in court for a pre-trial on March third.
Convinced Seneca’s attack was a hate crime, White said: “He chose to go on the app Grindr.
“He went on an app designated for gay people.
“He chose to choose someone who is gay and very proud of his sexuality.
“He said this in prison. He said he chose me because I have a smaller stature and it would be easier to kill me.
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“He knew what he was doing. This was preplanned.
“It will always be a hate crime to me.”
A GoFundMe page set up to help Holden’s recovery has raised over $100,000.