Covid memorial graffiti is a 'targeted attack'

A memorial dedicated to frontline workers who lost their lives during the Covid pandemic has been vandalised for a second time in what a councillor has claimed is a "targeted attack".

The rainbow logo on a memorial bench by Shaw town centre in Oldham, was graffitied with the word 'killers' over the Easter weekend.

It comes a month after the nearby plaque and oak tree erected in 2020 to honour the work of NHS nurses and doctors during the pandemic were also attacked by vandals.

Oldham Councillor for Shaw Marc Hince said the latest damage was "absolutely appalling", adding it was "clearly a targeted attack".

An image shared with the Local Democracy Reporting Service shows the bench defaced with red paint.

Efforts were underway to remove the graffiti and replace the damaged plaque and tree, a Shaw and Crompton Town Council spokesman said.

The matter had been reported to Greater Manchester Police, they added.

Hince said: "My local doctor sadly passed away during the pandemic and my wife was frontline NHS personnel.

"This bench is to commemorate their sacrifices.

"To brand them as 'killers' when everyone who worked on the frontline put themselves at risk for the public, is simply unacceptable."

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