People across Liverpool have rallied around a family who were spat at and racially abused while visiting the home of their beloved Liverpool FC
Salim Ahmed and his family were spat at and abused as they travelled to Anfield, the home of their beloved Liverpool Football Club
Salim Ahmed and his family were spat at and abused as they travelled to Anfield, the home of their beloved Liverpool Football Club
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Scousers have rallied round a family who were spat at and racially abused during a trip to Anfield.
On Wednesday, the ECHO told the story of 39-year-old businessman Salim Ahmed, a lifelong Liverpool fan from Bristol, who brought his family on what they hoped would be a 'dream trip' to see their beloved team in action over the last weekend.
With tickets to see the Reds take on Monaco in a pre-season friendly on Sunday, Salim, his wife and 7, 9 and 13-year-old children planned to make a weekend of it to celebrate their eldest child's birthday.
Having arrived in the city on Friday evening, the family decided to take a stroll around the famous stadium to look at the murals of LFC stars past and present. But around 9.30pm, they were attacked and abused by a gang of youths on bikes, who spat at them and hurled racist abuse in their direction.
The story has caused shock and anger across Liverpool and many ECHO readers have had their say, expressing how angry they were to hear of the family's treatment and assuring them that the vile racist thugs involved do not represent the city at large.
Reacting on Facebook, Kathy Woods said: "How sad this is when we are renowned for our kindness and hospitality in this city. I really hope Liverpoool Football Club can bring this family back and give them a lovely experience and they can go away with good memories not bad ones from a minority of horrible kids."
Enid Brough addressed the family with her comment, adding: "So sorry for you and your family I hope you can return to have a much better experience."
Ann Maloney added: "So sorry for that dreadful experience you all went through. I hope the club get to hear of this awful incident and invite you to a great day out."
Salim Ahmed and his family were spat at and abused as they travelled to Anfield, the home of their beloved Liverpool Football Club
Salim Ahmed and his family were spat at and abused as they travelled to Anfield, the home of their beloved Liverpool Football Club
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Angela Stuart said: "So terribly sad. I was born in Liverpool, but don’t live in England now. I am always saddened, when I hear of such despicable incidents.
"I often hear great stories of Liverpool people being kind, funny, hospitable and generous. It makes me sad to read this kind of racism and violence towards people. I hope these perpetrators are caught & get what they deserve."
Hammad Leghari said Liverpool is "better than this", adding: "We've always welcomed people from across the world to come through the Shankly gates for decades. I hope these vile behaviours get addressed.. Apologies to the family, as these behaviours are not a representation of our scouse values. YNWA."
There were some on social media who bizarrely tried to claim that the incident didn't happen, despite eyewitnesses and a police statement.
Lee Thomas was one of those, suggesting our reporting on the family's experience was fictional, without providing any evidence to back up his claim.
Eyewitness Michelle Phennah replied to state: "This did happen I witnessed it and his poor family."
Others commented on the worrying rise of racist incidents across our society. David Lancaster said: "Once you let racism out of the bottle and let it be used to win elections, it's very difficult to put it back in the bottle."
Ryan Ellison added: "It says a lot about what is going on at home with these kids acting like this, parents should be teaching their kids about respect for all people, instead of being racist as it feeds on it. This is disgraceful."
Speaking about the incident, Liverpool Chief Inspector Andrew Fielding said: “This was an absolutely despicable abuse and assault of a family who were simply enjoying artwork near to Anfield Stadium, only to be confronted by youths intent on causing fear and distress. We are supporting the victims as our investigation continues.
“Enquiries are ongoing to identify these youths and I would appeal to anyone who was in the area at around 9.30pm, or lives locally and may have captured images or moving footage on CCTV, dashcam or doorbell devices. Your information could be vital in tracking down those responsible. Similarly, if you know the names of anyone involved, do the right thing and come forward.
"We will not tolerate hate crime or violence in our communities, and be assured that we will assess all information received and take appropriate action.”
Anyone with information should contact Merseyside Police social media desk via X or Facebook @MerPolCC. You can also report information via our website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ or by calling 101 quoting incident reference 26000647046.
The ECHO understands that Liverpool FC is investigating and seeing how it can help the family and the police, including monitoring CCTV in the area. The club is in direct contact with Salim and is aiming to help however it can.