Merseyside Police search for five males after 'racist and hateful graffiti' found at multiple locations
Merseyside Police are appealing for information after racist graffiti was sprayed at various locations in Merseyside.
WARNING: This article contains an offensive picture.
On Tuesday (September 23), the force received several reports that offensive graffiti had been found in areas of Litherland, Seaforth and Bootle overnight.
Following CCTV inquiries, police believe the suspects are five males who were dressed in all black and wore face coverings with hoods up. One of the males was on a pedal bike and the other four were on foot.
The graffiti, which has now been removed, was sprayed at locations on Bridge Road in Litherland, on buildings near the canal towpath, Seaforth and Litherland railway station, North Park, Bootle Leisure Centre and Marsh Lane.
Detective Inspector Keith Swift said: “Our investigation is progressing and we believe the suspects in these incidents were five males. We are determined to find them and our inquiries are ongoing.
“They clearly made a concerted effort to hide their identifies and we are relying on the local community, who I’m sure are just as appalled as we are, to come forward with information.
“If you live in the area and have any knowledge of who carried this out, let us know. Similarly, please check your CCTV or dashcam footage from the evening of Monday 22 September into the early hours of the morning on Tuesday 23 September to see if you captured anything significant.
“We will not tolerate racist and hateful graffiti being committed in our community and we are carrying out enquiries to find the perpetrators.”
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Anyone with information on the incident should contact the Merseyside Police social media desk @MerPolCC on X and Facebook quoting log reference 25000785826.You can also report information via their website or call 101.
Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website.
If for any reason, you do not wish to report a hate crime to the police, the independent charity Stop Hate UK to run a 24/7 confidential helpline for all victims of hate crime on 0800 138 1625 or www.stophateuk.org.
You can also download the Stop Hate UK reporting app on Google Play or the Apple App Store. Across Merseyside, they are also have a number of third party reporting centres including fire stations, citizens advice bureaus and hospitals. Locations can be found here.