Nadine Osman

LBC presenter Katie Hopkins has been accused of a hate crime after a tweet in the wake of the arrest of a suspected Westminster terrorist yards from Downing Street. In her tweet on April 27, the Mail Online columnist appeared to suggest that a series of terror incidents were all linked to Ramadan.

Hopkins tweeted: “Explosion in France, shooting at a German hospital, knife attack in London. And Ramadan has not yet begun. Without food these sods get nasty.”

London Metropolitan Police confirmed a complaint about a tweet had been received and “the allegation will be reviewed and assessed by specialist officers.”

The tweet appears to reference an explosion at a McDonald’s in Grenoble, France; police shooting a man at a hospital in Berlin; and the arrest of a man on suspicion of preparing an act of terrorism in Westminster, London.

Damian Isherwood from Westhoughton tweeted back and copied in the Metropolitan Police.
“I’m reporting you for a hate crime as your hateful tweets towards people of Muslim faith will incite racial violence,” Isherwood wrote.

Metropolitan Police commented several times in the conversation sparked by the tweet.
“Hi, pls DM us so we can take some further details,” police said. Another woman called Jennifer added: “Please do something about this woman. There is a line between free speech and hate speech.”

Met Police again invited her to make a complaint: “Hi Jennifer, pls DM us so we can take some further details. Thanks.”

The reality TV personality responded by accusing those making complaints of wasting police time. “Well done sir,” she wrote to Isherwood. “I am certain the police do not have anything more pressing to attend to. Why not start a petition as well?”

The Metropolitan Police said: “As is routine, the allegation will be reviewed and assessed by specialist officers.”