George Zimmerman, killer of Trayvon Martin, banned from Tinder after creating fake dating app profile

George Zimmerman, the Florida man who killed Trayvon Martin in 2012, has been banned from multiple dating apps, ABC News reports.

Tinder has removed Zimmerman’s profile because of safety reasons, according to a statement from the company.

“We take the safety of our users very seriously and acted appropriately once the profile was discovered,” a Tinder spokesperson said in a written statement to CNN.

Zimmerman allegedly went by the fake name “Carter” and said he was a self-employed guy seeking “carefree fun,” according to the Tampa Bay news website Creative Loafing, which first reported Zimmerman’s Tinder profile.

Impersonation also is a violation of the company’s terms of use.

Zimmerman, 35, wrote on the app that he likes fishing, hiking, being outdoors and takeout from Longhorn Steakhouse. He also said he prefers to stay away from “large crowds.”

Screenshots of the profile show Zimmerman uploaded numerous photos, including photos of himself shirtless, with a dog and donning graduation regalia.

Bumble also has repeatedly removed Zimmerman’s profile, most recently in February, according to the New York Post. In those profiles, he had referred to himself as a “jury consultant” who enjoys mature women and eating cake pops.

“George Zimmerman was blocked and banned in December 2018 when we first discovered his profile and we have blocked and banned him again after we were informed by our users that he had created a new unverified profile,” Bumble said in a statement to CNN. “We have thousands of moderators working tirelessly with our users to make Bumble the safest and most empowering social networking platform and this is another example of those efforts.”

A former neighborhood watch volunteer, Zimmerman shot and killed Martin but was acquitted of charges on self-defense grounds.

Since the high-profile case, Zimmerman was arrested in 2015 after allegedly throwing a bottle of wine at his girlfriend, although prosecutors dropped that case.

Zimmerman also pleaded no contest in November after he was charged with stalking a private investigator working on a documentary about the Martin killing.

 

[Feature image: Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel via AP, Pool, File]