Man charged in connection with hate crime incident in Liverpool

A man has been charged following a homophobic assault in Liverpool in June this year.

On 16^th June it was reported that the victim, a man in his 30s, was in McDonalds on Edge Lane when a man approached him and made homophobic comments and then punched him in the face. The offender then made off.

Alan Whitfield, 50 years, of Tom Mann Close, Everton has been charged with assault by beating.

He will appear at Liverpool Magistrates Court on Tuesday 5 September.

Detective Inspector Alan Nuttall said: “No one, no matter what their background or religious beliefs, should be assaulted, threatened, or subjected to any form of hate crime.

“Please be reassured that we thoroughly investigate reports of those targeted through hate crime and will be relentless to bring offenders to justice.”

To report a hate crime contact @MerPolCC or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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, we also have a number of third party reporting centres including fire stations, citizens advice bureaus and hospitals. A list of locations can be viewed here: merseyside-third-party-hate-crime-reporting-centres.pdf