Racist graffiti scrawled on house days before Sri Lankan family moves in

Police are appealing for information to catch those who carried out the act

The house on Stapleton Avenue, Speke, which was daubed with racist graffiti (Liverpool Echo)

Racist graffiti has been scrawled on the house of a Sri Lankan family days before they were due to move in.

The property in the Liverpool suburb of Speke was covered in Islamophobic and racist words and phrases. The house’s windows had also been smashed.

But it appears the people behind the graffiti mistook the Sri Lankan family, who are Hindu, for Pakistanis of Muslim faith.

The messages included "p***" and the phrase "Allar Abar" [sic], a bastardisation of "Allahu Akbar", a common expression in Arabic often used by Muslims to express their faith.

The family-of-five are due to move from London to join other members of their extended family who have lived in Speke for two years.

Detective Inspector Debbie Tipton of Merseyside police said: “We will not tolerate hate crimes being committed against members of our community and everything possible is being done to investigate this incident.

"Everyone has the right to live peacefully within their community and to go about their daily lives without harassment from others just because they are perceived to be different.

"We will take the strongest possible action against those who behaved in this unacceptable way."

Anyone with information is asked to contact detectives on 0151 777 4086, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.