A 20-year-old from Whiteley has been banned from attending football matches for three years after sending racist abuse to a professional footballer via Instagram following an FA Cup match.
Harry Dunbar, from John Bunyan Close in Whiteley, directed racial slurs through Instagram at Christopher Wreh after the FA Cup tie between Tamworth and Tottenham Hotspur in January.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary’s Football Unit and Investigations Team collaborated with police forces nationwide to trace the account holder and bring him before the courts.
Wreh had appeared as a substitute for Tamworth during the match, but upon returning home and checking Instagram, he discovered a message from an unknown account named ‘Dunztagram’.
Disturbed by the content, he posted a screenshot showing the username and shared it across his social media platforms, writing: “After an amazing day today, this is the last thing I expected to see when I opened Instagram. Never the less, thank you for all the support today. Fans were unreal.”
The post received over 1.7 million views, leading to Wreh being contacted by individuals who identified the account holder as Harry Dunbar, then residing in Hampshire.
Wreh forwarded this information to Tamworth FC’s Dedicated Football Officer for Staffordshire Police, who subsequently passed it to the UK Football Policing Unit and Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary’s Football Unit.
Following evidence collection, officers visited Dunbar’s Whiteley address where he was arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated malicious communications.
Police seized his mobile phone and, despite the Instagram account being deleted, forensic examination confirmed he owned the ‘Dunztagram’ profile. During questioning, he confessed to sending the message after losing a wager.
At Portsmouth Magistrates Court on Wednesday 18 June, Dunbar received a three-year football banning order and a 12-month Community Order requiring 200 hours of unpaid work plus 10 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days.
Superintendent Adrian Hall, Head of Operations for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary, commented:
“Simply because Christopher Wreh was a footballer, Dunbar believed he was entitled to send him racist abuse.
“No one should endure such vile and disgusting treatment, irrespective of their profession.
“I am completely appalled by Dunbar’s racist language, but enormously grateful to Christopher Wreh for his courage in confronting this terrible abuse and supporting our investigation.
“Due to Christopher’s actions, this individual will lose the privilege of attending football matches, which represents a significant outcome from this case, as racism has no place in football stadiums or anywhere in society.
“I wish to thank our officers and colleagues from forces nationwide, including the central UK Football Policing Unit, who worked collectively to identify Dunbar and secure justice.
“This demonstrates that regardless of location or match venue, Dedicated Football Officers throughout the country will unite to eliminate racists from the sport we cherish.”
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Cheshire Constabulary Chief Constable Mark Roberts, the NPCC Lead for football policing, stated:
“Everyone bears responsibility for their words and actions, and social media posts are no exception. In this instance, Dunbar sent racist comments directly to Wreh via Instagram, believing he could hide behind his account identity.
“His remarks were completely abhorrent and rightfully shocked and disgusted people nationwide when Wreh courageously shared the message he received.
“I welcome Dunbar’s sentence and hope it serves as a deterrent to other social media users, showing that accountability follows your posts.
“We have stated clearly that hate crime, whether online or offline, is unacceptable, and as demonstrated here, you cannot use social media profiles to hide whilst posting vile comments and spreading hatred.”
