Vandals who damaged and destroyed heartfelt floral tributes to Queen Elizabeth II have been branded ‘disgraceful’ by shocked mourners.
People who have paid tribute to Her Majesty in communities across the North East have urged the authorities to catch those responsible after flowers were removed from a temporary memorial in a Billingham park.
Residents have laid bouquets of flowers and left personal messages of thanks to the late Queen after her death but were shocked to see some of the tributes had been damaged.
A group of people are alleged to have taken flowers from John Whitehead Park on Tuesday evening and damaged them.
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The damage, shared on social media, has caused outrage among the community with some labelling the behaviour ‘appalling’.
One person said: “Absolutely disgraceful. It's about time these children all were punished. This is disgusting behaviour.”
The temporary nature of the memorial, like hundreds of others across the region, mean that security is minimal, putting them at risk to vandals and thieves.
Yet one person who visited the site earlier this week feared it would soon become a target. They said: “When I went to see them the other day I sadly knew this would happen. Always trouble in that park. This is absolutely appalling. Disgusting behaviour.”
Meanwhile, others have called for increased surveillance of the area to catch any offenders in the future. “They need security cameras all over the park or a drone monitoring what’s going on! Disgraceful behaviour,” another resident said.
Stockton Council said it has increased officer patrols in the area while the reported damage has now been cleaned up.
Councillor Bob Cook, Leader of the Council, said: “We are very saddened by this incident and are urging anyone with information about those responsible to report it to the police.
“We have increased Civic Enforcement Officer patrols in the park and our staff have tidied the flower laying area, which remains open to members of the public who wish to pay their respects.”
Cleveland Police have been contacted for comment.
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