Police probe spate of hate crimes in Moira

The latest incident occurred at the weekend when ‘NF’ (National Front) was painted on a door at the back of the Bauhinia Palace restaurant in The Village Centre.

“Recently we have attended several reports of hate related incidents in Moira and they appear to be racially motivated,” a PSNI Lisburn spokesperson said. “These incidents have included racist graffiti on premises owned by our ethnic minority neighbours and even people spitting on the windows of these businesses. Overnight, someone has sprayed racist graffiti at the rear of Bauhinia Palace Chinese restaurant in Moira. This is totally unacceptable and has no place in our community.

“Everyone has the right to enjoy a peaceful life here in Northern Ireland but unfortunately it seems there are some people who don’t agree.”

Appealing to the local community to help police put a stop to the ongoing attacks, the spokesperson added: “To help us stop hate crime, report it - online via the PSNI website or via True Vision which is a website designed to provide information about hate crime. You can access it at www.report-it.org.uk. You can even report it anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. We don’t care which method you use, but if you know something about this, please tell us.”