Refugees targeted outside Knowsley protest hotel
Refugees have been attacked and abused outside a hotel in Merseyside which saw violent anti-migrant protests last month, police said.
Asylum seekers living at the Suites Hotel in Knowsley, along with staff and non-white people in the area who have nothing to do with the premises, have been targeted, said Merseyside Police, who are investigating a number of hate crimes.
Local residents attended a protest over alleged incidents related to residents at the hotel on 10 February.
700 people turned up and the demonstration ended in violence, with a standoff between protestors and police officers.
Police attempted to protect the venue before fireworks were thrown and a police van was vandalised and set on fire.
The force says those involved used rumours and allegations as an excuse to commit violence.
Sir George Howarth, the MP for the area, told Parliament the situation has "deteriorated" since the protest, with refugees fleeing violence abroad "only to find themselves in an unsafe position in this country".
He said the situation is "shameful" as he spoke out on Monday against the government’s Illegal Migration Bill in the House of Commons, urging Home Secretary Suella Braverman to mind her language when speaking about asylum and immigration.
Karl Baldwin, Knowsley community policing superintendent for Merseyside Police, said officers are investigating 10 crimes related to the hotel since the protest.
He said: "These include assaults, malicious communications and verbal abuse, both of staff, residents and people wrongly assumed to be connected to the premises.
"The incident in February put those in the community and our officers at risk. Those involved used rumours and allegations as an excuse to commit violence and intimidate members of the public."
The day after February’s protest, the hotel received a number of reportedly racist and obscene phone calls, Mr Baldwin said.
A 51-year-old local man was arrested and is on bail.
Three weeks later, two hotel residents were approached by a gang of men who shouted threats and followed them into Southdene Park before attacking them.
The day after, on 28 February, a man was attacked by two males on electric bikes armed with batons.
The victims suffered minor injuries in both attacks, which police said are being treated as hate crimes.
Officers are also investigating reports of people being verbally abused near the hotel.
Mr Baldwin added: "Such incidents can be the consequence of misinformation and rumour which can circulate and be shared by people with no thought to the harm and distress caused.
"We encourage everyone to view such information sceptically. What plays out online can have real world consequences that put innocent people in harm’s way."
The force is still investigating the disorder at the protest.
This week, Jared Skeete, 19, from Aigburth in Liverpool was convicted of violent disorder and will be sentenced next month.
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