Police treating Warrenpoint incident as a hate crime

Police are continuing to appeal for witnesses following reports of criminal damage to a memorial at Narrow Water in Warrenpoint on the evening of Saturday 15 September.

Speaking to Newry Times, Chief Inspector Gerry McGrath said, “We received a report of this incident at around 5.20pm and we are currently treating it as a hate crime. 

“Anyone who witnessed what happened or was travelling on the Warrenpoint road between 5.00pm and 5.15pm and has dashcam/ helmet footage should contact us on 101, quoting reference number 1012 of 15/9/18.

“A bus was subsequently stopped in the Lisburn area around 6pm and a number of passengers spoken to. 

He added, “The vehicle was then retained by police as part of our ongoing investigation.”

Sinn Féin MLA Sinead Ennis condemned the incident. The South Down MLA said, “This is the second time in recent months that the wreaths at Narrow Water in Warrenpoint have been vandalised.

“There is no place for attacks like this in our society and I condemn this act outright.

“Monuments and memorials are important places in communities and should be respected.

She added, “I would encourage anyone with information on this incident to contact the PSNI.”

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Posted by Newry Times News on Sep 17 2018. Filed under Community. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry