Missing person Rotherham: Police scold 'disgusting, racist' comments on public appeal to find missing man

Missing man Abdul, 25, was last seen in Treherne Road, Moorgate, at around 7.30pm on Sunday (February 12), and could possibly have been seen walking towards Milton Road. Abdul is Asian, 5ft5ins tall, and was last seen wearing a black coat and black and white trainers. He is known to frequent Clifton Park and Herringthorpe playing fields. He has now been missing for four days and an appeal to being him home safely is ongoing.

It included an online appeal for help by South Yorkshire Police, where they asked anyone who might have information to ring 101, quoting incident number 142 of February 13.

However, rather than choosing to help or raise awareness, online trolls reportedly used the appeal to spread hateful comments – leading to the police wading in.

12 hours after the post on the SYP Facebook page, a moderator added: “Thank you to those who are supporting our appeal and sending well wishes.

"We know a few of you have suggested this but we may soon take the decision to switch comments off on this post. This is a last resort, as we encourage engagement on our platforms and don't want to lose any vital intelligence in relation to the investigation.

"That said, we refuse to host racism on our page. Some of the comments on this appeal have been disgusting and will be incredibly upsetting for Abdul's family and friends to read. Please think before you post.”

Dozens of residents have also shared their disgust in the comments section. One resident said: “Do you [officers] read these comments? I’m sick of reading them, every single time someone other than Caucasian is posted it’s the same bile. Sooooooo, what do you guys over there think could be done about it?”

The moderator responded: “Our page isn't monitored 24/7 but these comments have now been removed. We also share them with our intel unit to see if they meet the threshold for investigation.”

The force added: “Racist comments are not tolerated on any of posts and may be investigated as a criminal offence.”