- Hooligans set fire to a police station and raided shops in Sunderland on Friday.
- A taxi was also ignited as a large crowd encircled a Mosque in the city.
- Sunderland, a Championship football club, has denounced the ‘shameful incidents’.
The Championship football club Sunderland has released a statement denouncing the ‘shameful incidents’ that unfolded in the city on Friday night.
Hooligans, many of whom were masked, set a police station ablaze and looted local businesses.
A taxi was similarly ignited, and a large group of individuals surrounded the Millfield Mosque while police formed a protective barrier.
‘Tonight’s disgraceful events do not reflect our culture, history, or community,’ stated the club.
‘Our city thrives on unity and acceptance, and Sunderland will always stand for inclusivity. We are stronger as one community. Now. Then. Always.’
Sunderland Central Police Office was set on fire during riots that erupted in the city on Friday.
A vehicle was ignited by a group of hooligans in Sunderland city centre during the violent riots.
Sunderland AFC released a statement denouncing the ‘shameful scenes’ from Friday evening.
Among the crowd were individuals such as a shirtless man displaying a Nazi tattoo on his back.
One topless man was recorded delivering a racist rant, stating: ‘This time in your own f***ing country if you’re ashamed to be f***ing white and be an Englishman… f*** off.’
Sunderland is the latest city to face violent unrest from hooligans claiming to react to this week’s tragic stabbings in Southport, which resulted in the deaths of three children on Monday.
The 17-year-old suspect charged with the murders of the three girls in Southport was identified as Axel Rudakubana, from Banks in Lancashire, who appeared in court on Thursday.
A man in Sunderland was seen wearing red braces, with a Swastika tattoo on his back.
Prior to police identifying Rudakubana as the alleged assailant, widespread false information circulated on social media claiming that the knife attacks were perpetrated by a Muslim asylum seeker who had arrived in the UK via a small boat.
This misinformation appears to have incited a wave of Islamophobic reactions, leading to multiple attacks and threats against mosques in recent days.
