A POLICE officer who posted derogatory comments about Barnsley people on Twitter has had his ‘duties revised’ and an investigation is to be carried out by South Yorkshire Police.
Naz Gulzar posted tweets about Barnsley FC fans last weekend including ‘they have six fingers on each hand’ and referring to them as ‘thick dingles’ - a common insult levelled at Barnsley fans in reference to the family in the soap opera Emmerdale.
Older tweets included one from New Year’s Eve saying ‘Australia is already in 2018, Europe is still in 2017, and Barnsley is currently in 1950’.
Another one from years earlier said ‘GCSE results day... or McDonald’s recruiting day as it’s known in Barnsley’.
A complaint was made to police and he has since deleted his Twitter profile.
Chief Superintendent Scott Green said: “The matter has been referred to the force’s Professional Standards Department and an investigation will be carried out.
“The officer’s duties have been revised due to the nature and content of some of the comments on the account.
“We expect our officers and staff to behave with the utmost integrity and professionalism at all times and comments of an inappropriate and offensive nature will not be tolerated within the force.”
MEANWHILE a headteacher has issued an apology and deleted her Twitter account after being accused of sharing offensive content.
Judith Hirst is in charge of Laithes Primary, Barnsley, and Sandhill in Great Houghton.
Both are run by The Shire Multi-Academy Trust, where Ms Hirst is the chief executive officer.
Screenshots taken from Ms Hirst’s personal account showed the headteacher retweeting Tommy Robinson - the founder of the English Defence League (EDL).
One parent told the Chronicle: “For an executive head in charge of two schools, one of which is ‘requiring improvement’, it is deeply concerning.”
When approached by the Chronicle, Ms Hirst said she would be deleting her Twitter account immediately. It was deactivated within an hour.
She added: “At no time was the intention ever to cause any offence.
“I wholeheartedly and sincerely apologise for any offence caused.
“I can see now how it could cause offence but I never really thought about it.”
