Police hunt two people after hate crime before Pride

Police are hunting for two people after transphobic graffiti was sprayed around a park hours before a Pride event started.

Gloucestershire Police has released CCTV images of a man and a woman who were seen entering Bank Gardens in Stroud with cannisters at 3:30 BST on Saturday.

About 20 slogans appearing to target transgender people were sprayed at the gardens, with stickers of a similar theme placed around the area.

Insp Simon Ellson said: "Not only did this incident cause significant distress for many LGBT+ people in the community, it was also an act of mindless criminal damage."

PC Steph Lawrence added: "Hate crimes will not be tolerated and we will do all we can to ensure that people within our county feel safe in their day-to-day lives."

CCTV footage showed a man and a woman entering the gardens hours before Stroud Pride's celebrations began. Related graffiti was also found by a shop on Kendrick Street.

The male suspect is described as white and was wearing a black jacket with the hood up, light grey baggy trousers and black trainers.

The woman is also said to be white with long brown hair. She was wearing a light-coloured dress and a navy jacket and was carrying a black bag.

Volunteers from Stroud Town Council and the Stroud Pride worked swiftly to remove the graffiti, Insp Ellson said.

Anyone with relevant information should call police.

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