Police hunt for suspect who vandalised Pride flags outside station

The flags were painted on the pavement outside Forest Gate railway station in east London.

The Pride flag which was vandalised was painted on the pavement outside Forest Gate station (Alamy/PA)

Then Metropolitan Police has launched an appeal after three Pride flags were vandalised in Forest Gate, east London.

The flags, painted on the pavement outside Forest Gate railway station, were vandalised in the early hours of Friday morning.

This follows previous incidents of damage on June 23 and 26.

Officers have trawled CCTV, made house-to-house inquiries and conducted forensic investigations, but no arrests have been made.

The incidents are being treated as linked, and inquiries are ongoing, the force said.

As part of the appeal, police released an image of the suspect spraying paint on one of the flags.

Detective Inspector James Rush from the North East Public Protection Unit, who is leading efforts to identify the offender, appealed to the public for information.

“We stand with the local LGBTQ+ community and will not tolerate these disgusting, inexcusable hate crimes in Forest Gate,” he said.

“We are committed to continuing our thorough investigation and attempting to identify the offender, who we believe is the same person who committed the damage in June at the same location.

“The Met is clear that there is no place for hate in London, and my team are already working at pace to complete all lines of inquiry.

“I want to directly address the local community in Forest Gate. Someone knows who this person is. Do the right thing, and tell police or, to remain anonymous, contact Crimestoppers.”

Caron Harrison, co-founder of Forest Gayte Pride, said the local LGBT+ community was “appalled”, but “they cannot paint over our pride”.

Anyone with information has been asked to contact police by calling 101 or via the Met Police website, quoting reference 1117/17JUL24.