Three British teenagers who mocked George Floyd's death in sick online video are ARRESTED on suspicion of committing a hate crime

No free speech in Britain

Three British teenagers who mocked the murder of George Floyd in a Snapchat video have now been arrested on suspicion of committing a hate crime.

The trio, all from Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, caused outrage after a photo of them recreating how the unarmed 46-year-old black man died at the hands of police in Minnesota was shared on social media. 

Mr Floyd was killed after police Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for several minutes, with the death leading to riots across the US and protests at cities around the world including London, Manchester and Cardiff.

Despite the fury, the three teenagers posted the mocking Snapchat video last week, though they were forced to shut down their social media profiles after it quickly spread.

They have also reportedly started receiving death threats and are now thought to be in police protections.

Northumbria Police did not confirm this, though a spokesperson did reveal that the trio had been arrested, with the Snapchat video now being treated as a hate crime.  

A police statement said: 'We can confirm we are investigating after an image was shared on social media which showed two men imitating the recent death of US citizen George Floyd.

'An investigation was launched and yesterday (Sunday) officers arrested two males aged 19 and another male aged 18 on suspicion of sending communications causing anxiety and distress.

'They have since been released on bail. We understand that this social media post has caused significant upset and we want to reassure the public it is being investigated robustly and is being treated as a hate crime.' 

SOURCE