Offensive graffiti appeared across parts of south Sefton earlier this week
17:53, 26 Sep 2025Updated 18:11, 26 Sep 2025
Graffiti on the walls of an underpass in Litherland(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Police are searching for five suspects after “racist and hateful” graffiti appeared across south Sefton earlier this week. On Tuesday, September 23, Merseyside Police received several reports that offensive graffiti had been found in areas of Litherland, Seaforth and Bootle overnight.
Following CCTV inquiries, police believe the suspects are five males who were dressed in all black and wore face coverings with hoods up. One of the males was on a pedal bike and the other four were on foot
The graffiti, which has now been removed, was sprayed at locations on Bridge Road in Litherland, on buildings near the canal towpath, Seaforth and Litherland railway station, North Park, Bootle Leisure Centre and Marsh Lane.
The horrific graffiti around parts of Sefton has prompted a furious response from the borough’s council leader, Cllr Marion Atkinson.
She told the ECHO: “I am extremely disturbed by this disgusting graffiti. This is absolutely unacceptable and we will not be tolerating this filth.
“We have had these hate crimes reported to us by local residents who are as outraged and disgusted by what they have seen as we are and we will be taking action to remove it.”
Graffiti on Havelock Road in Bootle(Image: Liverpool Echo)
An incensed Cllr Atkinson added: “We are not having it. These are hate crimes and we will be working closely with the police to work to make sure whoever did this is caught.”
Detective Inspector Keith Swift said: “Our investigation is progressing and we believe the suspects in these incidents were five males. We are determined to find them and our inquiries are ongoing.“They clearly made a concerted effort to hide their identifies and we are relying on the local community, who I’m sure are just as appalled as we are, to come forward with information.“If you live in the area and have any knowledge of who carried this out, let us know. Similarly, please check your CCTV or dashcam footage from the evening of Monday, September 22 into the early hours of the morning on Tuesday, September 23 to see if you captured anything significant.
Graffiti in Litherland, Liverpool(Image: Liverpool Echo)
“We will not tolerate racist and hateful graffiti being committed in our community and we are carrying out enquiries to find the perpetrators.”
Anyone with information on the incident should contact the Merseyside Police social media desk @MerPolCC on X and Facebook quoting log reference 25000785826.You can also report information via the website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ or call 101.
Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously.
If, for any reason, you do not wish to report a hate crime to the police, the independent charity Stop Hate UK to run a 24/7 confidential helpline for all victims of hate crime on 0800 138 1625 or www.stophateuk.org. You can also download the Stop Hate UK reporting app on Google Play or the Apple App Store.
Across Merseyside, there are a number of third party reporting centres including fire stations, citizens advice bureaus and hospitals. A list of locations can be viewed here.