Speculation that a man whose body was found in a Sydney park was the victim of a gay hate crime creates unnecessary panic, a gay rights activist says.
The 37-year-old Redfern man's body was found lying face down on a jogging track in Centennial Park early on Saturday morning.
Detective Inspector Paul Pisanos on Sunday said police were looking into the possibility the death was the result of a gay bashing, as the park is known as a gay beat.
But it was only one of several lines of inquiry, he said. Anti-discrimination campaigner Gary Burns says the area where the man's body was found is not a known gay beat.
He said the speculation was creating "unnecessary panic" in the lead-up to a large event in the Sydney gay community this weekend.
"It is also unfair to the family of this man to suggest he was trawling for male sex in a dark and dimly lit park late at night," Mr Burns said in a statement on Monday.
Police should be allowed to get on with their investigation, he said.
