Group of men spat alcohol on teenage boy and told him he had 'skin colour of a dog' on train

Boy was travelling with friends when he was abused

Police want to speak to the man pictured here on CCTV. (British Transport Police)

A teenager was spat on and told he had the “skin colour of a dog” by a group of men on a train.

As the 16-year-old was travelling from Preston Park and Hassocks in Sussex on 24 September with friends, the group approached them and began racially abusing them.

They also threatened to attack them.

One of the men then spat alcohol onto a 16-year-old boy before threatening to hit him with a bottle.

He also told the teenager that he had the "skin colour of a dog", British Transport Police said.

As the force released CCTV images of the incident, detective constable Imogen Sweeney called on witnesses to come forward to help with the investigation.

“Hate crime will never be tolerated on the rail network and we have a number of enquiries underway to identify those responsible for this abuse,” she said. “I would encourage anyone with information to pick up the phone and call or send us a text message with details. Your information might prove essential in our investigation.”

The incident is being treated as a hate crime that was both racially and religiously aggravated.

If you have any information, contact the British Transport Police by sending a text to 61016 or call 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference 404 of 24/09/2018. Or you can ring Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.