Euro 2020: Man arrested over social media posts aimed at England players

Suspect detained in Manchester after two other men arrested by West Mercia Police over other posts

A man has been arrested over social media posts directed at England football players following the Euro 2020 final.

Greater Manchester Police said the 37-year-old man handed himself in at Cheadle Heath police station on Wednesday morning.

Officials said they could not confirm the man’s identity at this stage, but said he was from Ashton-Upon-Mersey.

He was arrested on suspicion of an offence under the Malicious Communications Act and remains in custody for questioning.

It comes after Andrew Bone, a 37-year-old commercial building manager from Greater Manchester, was suspended by his employer Savills over a racist tweet about England footballers.

He was reported to have contacted police claiming his Twitter account had been hacked when the post appeared on Sunday night.

Detective Inspector Matt Gregory said: “The actions of a small number of people overshadowed what was a hugely unifying event for our country on Sunday evening. We are firm in our commitment, any racist abuse whether online or off is not acceptable.

“We now have one man in custody and our investigation continues.”

It comes after two men were arrested by West Mercia Police amid racist abuse targeting Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka following England’s loss against Italy on penalties.

A 50-year-old man from Powick, near Worcester, was detained on suspicion of inciting racial hatred.

Media reports said the tweet said Rashford’s MBE “needs burning ya fake” and adding he should return to his “own country”.

The force also arrested and released a man in his 60s from Shropshire after racist comments appeared on Facebook.

The man, reportedly a councillor who later resigned from Pontesbury Parish Council, said his Facebook account had been hacked.

The investigations come after disorder at Wembley on Sunday, as fans without tickets forced their way inside the stadium.

Police are also investigating “random attacks on Italians” that were launched by England fans after the final.

Cheshire Constabulary chief constable Mark Roberts, who is the national lead for football policing, told The Independent: “We have seen random attacks on Italians ... Italians celebrating the win have been attacked.

“We haven’t seen massive numbers but there have been far too many. We do see these incidents when England get knocked out of tournaments in terms of the targeting of foreign nationals.”

Forces across the country are still collating figures on the number of incidents targeting supporters of Italy, who won the tournament on penalties.

More than 2,300 police incidents linked to the Euros have so far been recorded, surpassing the 2018 World Cup to make it the worst football tournament on record for crime.

They include stabbings, glassings, fights and assaults on police officers, with at least 622 people arrested so far in England and Wales.

Anyone with information on the abuse of England players is asked to contact Greater Manchester Police on 0161 856 4973 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.