Image: sickchirpse.com
It may have come to your attention via lame stream media or social media that a group of men took it upon themselves to craft and burn an effigy of the ill fated Grenfell Tower on bonfire night. Footage of the men burning the effigy went viral and needless to say the “joke” which was in very poor taste has not gone down well.
In the footage the party goers can be heard laughing raucously as the crudely constructed effigy is burned on top of a caged fire. During the clip deplorable comments made by the attendees can be heard saying “Didn’t it start from the tenth floor, though?” while others said: “Help me! Help me!” “Jump out the window!” and “That’s what happens when they don’t pay their rent.” You can see the footage here:
https://youtu.be/RJkL4TV_3i8
It’s believed that 6 men have now turned themselves in to a south London police station. 3 of these men have now been named as Bobbi Connell, 19, his father Clifford Connell, and Mark Russell, 49, although he may not have been arrested.
Metropolitan police confirmed that two men aged 49 and the rest aged 19, 46 and 55, handed themselves in at a south London police station at 10pm on Monday. Another 19-year-old man handed himself in on Tuesday. The men were arrested on suspicion of a public order offence and taken into custody.
Images of some of the men involved have been doing the rounds.
Picture: Facebook – Via mirror.co.uk – Bobbi Connell along with his father Clifford
Picture: Facebook – Via metro.co.uk – Mark Russel
Reaction to the effigy burning
As you’d expect there has been a considerable outpouring of revulsion and condemnation from the public and authorities. Metropolitan Police Commander Stuart Cundy said he was “frankly appalled by the callous nature” of the video.
London Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton, who was assisted in the firefight at Grenfell, said the video was “appalling and disturbing”.
Moyra Samuels, part of the Justice For Grenfell campaign group, spoke about the outrage “right across the country, of ordinary decent people who actually saw it for what it was”.
Natasha Elcock, from Grenfell United, said “It’s a disgusting video. We hope that the police are taking this seriously”.
Justice4Grenfell said the video “caused great alarm and distress”.
London mayor Sadiq Khan said he “utterly” condemned the “sickening” video, describing the Grenfell Tower fire as “one of the most devastating tragedies our city has ever suffered”.
Bobbi Cornell’s grandfather David Connell was appalled by his grandson and son’s actions. He told the MailOnline “It’s an appalling thing to do given the tragic loss of life. It’s in dreadfully bad taste and utterly shocking and I don’t condone it at all. I don’t know what they were thinking. What were they doing?”
Let us know in the comments below what you think of these guys and how you think they should be punished. In other more light hearted crime news,
