POLICE have arrested the Savills estate agent who is accused of sending racist abuse targeting England players from his Twitter account.
Vile trolls targeted Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho after the Three Lions were beaten on penalties in last night’s agonising final.
A post from Andrew Bone’s Twitter account branded the players the N word and claimed the England stars had “ruined it for us” after the loss.
Estate agents Savills confirmed Bone was being investigated over the tweets – before later adding he had since been suspended.
Greater Manchester Police have confirmed that Bone, 37 was arrested after he self presented at Cheadle Heath police station this morning.
He was arrested on suspicion of an offence under Section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act.
Three police officers carrying evidence bags and a police radio were seen searching Bone’s terraced property.
They spent 20 minutes at his home, in Manchester, before they left holding a laptop.
‘NOT RACIST’
Bone’s family previously told The Sun that his account had been hacked – and he had reported the matter to police.
They also claimed Bone is “not racist” and shut down his accounts when he began receiving messages late last night.
His stepdad said: “It looks like his account was hacked.
“He is not racist. He was in shock last night when he started getting remarks on his Twitter account saying he was racist.
“He has actually contacted the police himself. It looks like it has been sent by someone with a grievance.”
Bone, a commercial building manager, now remains suspended by Savills pending a full investigation.
He has actually contacted the police himself.
Bone’s stepdad
The estate agent said: “Savills confirms that the staff member connected with the racist comments placed on Twitter claims that his account was taken over by a third party and that the matter is being referred to Greater Manchester Police.
“Savills have acted swiftly and confirms that the individual is suspended from duty pending the findings of this investigation, which is being progressed as a priority.
“Savills has a policy of zero tolerance on any form of racial abuse or discrimination.”
Bone’s Twitter account and LinkedIn page have both been deleted, and he has been released from custody following his arrest. .
Detective Inspector Matt Gregory of the force’s Trafford division said: “The actions of a small number of people overshadowed what was a hugely unifying event for our country on Sunday evening.
“We are firm in our commitment, any racist abuse whether online or off is not acceptable.”
‘NOT ACCEPTABLE’
A GMP spokesman added: “A man arrested after social media posts were directed towards England football team players following the Euro 2020 final has been released under investigation.
“The suspect, aged 37, from Ashton-Upon-Mersey, self-presented at Cheadle Heath police station this morning (14 July 21).
“He was subsequently arrested on suspicion of an offence under Section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act and later released under investigation.
“Police would like to hear from anyone with information on 0161 856 4973, quoting incident number 109 of 12/7/2021. Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
“Anyone who has been a victim, or witness of hate crime, report it at your earliest opportunity via 101, LiveChat or online at www.gmp.police.uk. Alternatively you can visit www.letsendhatecrime.com.”
His arrest comes after an England fan posted a video online abusing the England aces, calling them “f***ing c***s”.
He posted a hateful rant on social media, as cops arrested a 49-year-old from Kent in relation to a malicious communications offence.
A disgraced comedian has also come under fire and seen his shows cancelled after taking aim at black England players.
Stand-up Andrew Lawrence, 41, saw a string of his UK shows cancelled after a number of the nine scheduled venues across the UK refused to host him.
A kids football coach has claimed his Twitter account was hacked after a racist tweet was sent to Marcus Rashford denying it was him.
Nick Scott, 50, from Powick, Worcestershire, denied sending a sickening homophobic tweet aimed at the England women’s football team.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
