Cops have arrested a serial killer suspected of killing and robbing gay men he lured through dating apps and then murdered with a martial arts movie known as a rear naked choke.

Jose Tiago Correia Soroka was arrested at a boarding house in the Brazilian city of Curitiba on 29th May.

According to the police, he confessed to his crimes during questioning, telling officers he had intended to kill a victim a week and that he chose gay men because it was easy to lure them.

Officers found him with the help of a fourth victim, who survived a homicide attempt at his hands on 11th May.

Soroka told officers he killed his victims by giving them a rear-naked choke until they passed out, after which he would smother them with a pillowcase and then steal their belongings.

The rear naked choke is applied from an opponent’s back and is called “naked” because it only involves the arms and no other implements.

He had managed to kill three men in the 30 days as part of his plan to kill one a week but was unable to continue his killing spree because his photo had been divulged, and men using the dating app recognised him.

The suspect denied that his crimes were motivated by homophobia, but officers believe otherwise. Police chief Tiago Nobrega said: “He has problems with the issue of homosexuality.”

The police also believe he sold the stolen victims’ belongings in order to buy drugs.

Soroka’s victims have been named as Robson Olivino Paim, David Junior Alves Levisio and Marco Vinicio Bozzana da Fonseca. They were all young, gay men.

He killed Robson in the municipality of Abelardo Luz on 16th April and David and Marco in Curitiba on 27th April and 4th May, respectively.

Soroka had been unemployed since quitting his job in March, and he has two children to a woman who has a restraining order against him.

He has a criminal record for two instances of theft in 2015 and 2019. He currently remains in preventive custody, awaiting trial.