SUSSEX POLICE are investigating a racist message that was sent to a black footballer on a social network website after he was sent off during a match on October 27.
Crawley Town’s Hope Akpan was shown a red card during last weekend’s League One fixture against Oldham Athletic.
The 21-year-old then received a tweet on his Twitter account that said: “Why you been sent off ya c**n."
Akpan, who is of Nigerian heritage, forwarded the message to his followers, saying: "Should I report this or not?"
This led to many angry responses being left on the offensive Twitter user’s page, forcing them to close their account.
A spokesperson for Sussex Police said: “Sussex Police is investigating an allegation of a racist tweet sent to a Crawley Town football player.
“The investigation is in its early stages and officers are liaising with Greater Manchester Police to identify the offender.”
A statement from Crawley Town said: “Crawley Town FC has a zero-tolerance policy towards racism of any kind and will do all it can to assist the authorities in dealing with instances of racism affecting our players or staff.”
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