TWO men were arrested after reports of offensive anti-LGBT leaflets being distributed in Newcastle at the weekend.

Yesterday afternoon police received a number of reports about abusive behaviour at Grey's Monument, in the city centre.

It was reported that two men were shouting derogatory statements about the LGBT community and distributing homophobic leaflets.

Officers attended the scene and two men- aged 60 and 52- were arrested for public order offences and were last night in custody.

Northumbria Police’s Chief Inspector Gary Dickson confirmed that the incident is being treated as a hate crime.

He said: "An investigation into the behaviour of these two men is ongoing but at this time it is being treated as a hate crime.

"We work closely with our LGBT communities and will not tolerate hateful abuse that targets individuals because of who they are.

"I want to thank those who reported this to police and want to make it clear to all of our communities in Northumbria that being you is not a crime.

"If you have been the victim of a hate crime then we would ask you to report it in confidence by calling 101 or reporting it on our website."

You can also report hate crimes through a third party reporting centre, these can be found on the Northumbria Police website.