Leicestershire Police’s hate crime officer Sumaya Bihi (Credit: Leicestershire Police)

Harun Nasrullah

Leicestershire police force’s new hate crime officer faced a barrage of abuse after introducing herself online. Sumaya Bihi announced her new role in a Twitter post on October 3, saying she was the Hate Crime Officer for Leicestershire Police.

Tweeting from the Leicestershire Police Stay Safe account, she invited users to contact her with “queries or concerns” as she shared a photo of herself wearing a hijab. But the young Muslim woman was bombarded with abusive messages, some of which featured racist and derogatory language.

The post received more than 1,500 comments. Many were from people congratulating the officer on her appointment and others calling out the torrent of abuse she was facing.

The role has been established to help the force keep up to date with legislation concerning hate crimes. It also encourages alleged victims to report crimes against them.

Speaking about the alleged abuse faced by Bihi, a Leicestershire Police spokesman told the The Muslim News, ‘We are supporting our hate crime officer in a number of ways. Unacceptable messages have been reported to Twitter and we have opened our own inquiries into the abuse.’