Chelsea insist ‘hateful messages shared on social media do have consequences’ following the arrest of a 21-year-old man by the Met Police, who is accused of sending months of hate crime messages
- Chelsea have assisted the Metropolitan Police with their investigation
- It was n response to hate crime messages that were posted in 2020
- Arrest not connected with abuse of players Antonio Rudiger and Reece James
- Man, 21, was arrested in north Nottinghamshire with the help of local force
Chelsea have welcomed the arrest of a young man in relation to hate crime messages posted on social media.
The Metropolitan Police said today they had arrested a 21-year-old following hateful messages posted over a number of months.
The arrest was made in Retford by the Nottinghamshire force and the Met.
In a tweet, the police said: ‘This morning, @MPSFootballUnit officers assisted by @NottPolFootball attended an address in Retford and arrested a 21 year old male under the Malicious Communications Act.
‘This was in response to an investigation into a number of hate crime messages that were posted in 2020 on social media over a number of months.
‘These offences were brought to the attention of police by @ChelseaFC who have worked with the MPS to identify the suspect. The male was interviewed at a police station and released under investigation.’
Sportsmail understands the arrest is not related to the abuse of the club’s players or recent incidents in which Antonio Rudiger and Reece James have been targeted.
In response, Chelsea tweeted: ‘We welcome today’s arrest which shows that hateful messages shared on social media do have consequences.
‘We continue to work closely with the police to support their investigations on this important issue.’
More to follow.