Police Scotland have faced a social media backlash after launching a hate crime probe into lamp post stickers from a women’s rights group.
Officers in Kirkcaldy tweeted an appeal after receiving a report over the “controversial” signs in the Viewforth Avenue area of the town on May 17.
They urged anyone who came across the For Women Scotland stickers to contact officers or Fife Council to have them removed.
The appeal tweet has since been deleted from social media due to it being ‘badly worded’.
Police Scotland say they carried out enquiries with “no criminality” established but the force has taken heavy criticism on social media from bemused users.
Sharing the now-deleted tweet, SNP MP Joanna Cherry QC said: “Also keeping an eye on this. Being controversial is not a crime… Thankfully.”
One Twitter user wrote: “Kirkcaldy police will rid the country of the scourge of corrupting stickers. Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey. They will get to the bottom of it.”
Another said: “I’m moving to Kirkcaldy. Kirkcaldy Police has obviously eradicated every single crime in the area so they are now forced to fill their time investigating ‘controversial’ stickers. Commendations all round.”
A third added: “Seriously? That sticker is considered to be hateful enough for the police to involve themselves? What on earth is happening in Scotland?”
And another wrote: “If they’d just ignored them they probably would have gone unnoticed by the vast majority.
“Now everyone has seen them. Well publicised by the police.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Officers in Kirkcaldy received a report of a hate incident involving stickers in the Viewforth Avenue area around 9.15am on Monday, 17 May.
“Enquiries were carried out and no criminality has been established."
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