‘Blacked up’ beggars arrested for assault and racist taunts outside Waitrose

Two beggars who had blacked up outside Waitrose were arrested after assaulting a black man who objected to their racist taunts yesterday.

The pair had smeared what appeared to be boot polish on their faces and were gesturing at passers-by at about 11am outside the supermarket in Western Road.

A short while later, police were called when a fight broke out between the pair and a young black man.

One passer-by said: “Two homeless men were outside Waitrose, blacked up. They were gesturing to me when I stared at them on the bus. It looked like boot polish.

“I passed them again on the bus at about 1.30pm and saw police intervening, and a very angry young black man being kept apart from them.”

A police spokesman said: “Police were called to reports of a fight in Western Road, Brighton, at 1.35pm on Tuesday (February 19).

“A 36-year-old man of no fixed address was arrested on suspicion of displaying threatening or abusive writing or sign or visible representation likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress; two counts of racially or religiously aggravated harassment, alarm or distress by words or writing; using threatening or abusive words, behaviour or disorderly behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress; and two counts of assaulting a person thereby occasioning them actual bodily harm.

“A 29-year-man from Worthing was arrested on suspicion of displaying threatening or abusive writing or sign or visible representation likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress; two counts of racially or religiously aggravated harassment, alarm or distress by words or writing; using threatening or abusive words, behaviour or disorderly behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress; and assaulting a person thereby occasioning them actual bodily harm.

“Both were released under investigation.”