London petrol station cashier reportedly tells Jewish customer “I hate you guys”
Campaign Against Antisemitism received a report that on 9th December 2015, a Jewish man was subjected to antisemitic abuse at a petrol station in Stamford Hill, London, when he went to pay for his petrol. According to the report, as he finished paying for his petrol, the cashier said, “I hate you guys,” to which the victim responded, “What do you mean?” The cashier then allegedly answered: “I hate you and all you Jewish people.”
We have discussed the matter with the Metropolitan Police Service, which has confirmed that they attended the incident and treated it as a racially or religiously aggravated incident intended to cause harassment, alarm or distress, which is an offence under the Public Order Act. However, the victim declined to give police a statement and no evidence was found to substantiate the allegation, so the police were left with no option other than to have a discussion with the alleged offender and close the case.
Shomrim, the volunteer Jewish neighbourhood watch patrol, was introduced to the victim and helped him to make a statement to the police, but due to the absence of a corroborating second witness statement, police action was still not possible.
The police can only act when allegations are supported by evidence, including evidence from victims themselves wherever possible. Anybody who experiences antisemitism in person should first call the police, and then if it is safe to do so, they should try to capture video evidence using a smartphone and take the contact details of anyone else who witnessed the incident.