Man sentenced for sending racially offensive tweet to ex-Swansea City player

A man who tweeted a racially offensive message about a football player has been sentenced at Swansea Magistrates’ Court.

Josh Phillips, 26, sent the abusive message in response to a tweet from Swansea City Football Club announcing that player, Michael Obafemi, was being transferred on loan to Burnley Football Club.

 When interviewed by the police, Phillips said he stupidly made the comment after drinking and removed it shortly afterwards, describing the word as disgusting, telling the police he was disappointed in his own actions.

Matthew Henson of the CPS said: “Hate crime is truly abhorrent and has a significant detrimental impact on victims and the wider community.

“The CPS is committed to tackling hate crime in all its forms when cases pass our legal test, and has an enormous amount of concern for all victims of hate crime.”

Josh Phillips was sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment suspended for 18 months, with a community order for 18 months to include 160 hours of unpaid work. The court also imposed a football banning order for three years.

Douglas Mackay, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for West Midlands, and CPS Sports Lead Prosecutor, said:  “The CPS plays a crucial role in tackling these crimes and making football safe to watch and play. There is no place for hateful criminal acts in football, and incidents such as these have a significant negative impact on victims.

 “We will continue to work closely with the police, football authorities and fan groups to stamp this out to make sure that football is a game for everyone and not one that discriminates against anyone. We call on football fans to report incidents of hate crime and other criminality to the football clubs or the police.”