Police in Scotland have been roundly criticised after announcing that a man, identified as Joseph Kelly, was charged for tweeting an offensive post about the late Captain Sir Tom Moore.
After the veteran passed away last Tuesday, Kelly wrote, "The only good Brit soldier is a deed one, burn auld fella, buuuuurn", causing outrage. He will now face communications offences at Lanark Sheriff Court.
Lanarkshire police said on Monday that the tweet about the 100-year-old war hero was reported to them and a man from Lanarkshire had been arrested.
The tweet was immediately met with anger by netizens.
Musician and free speech advocate Laurence Fox replied saying that "police should be free to do their jobs, which is investigate actual crime, not arresting idiots who tweet idiotic things".
Others called the move a "waste of resources".
Some asked if this meant all the "real crime" had been solved in Lanarkshire.
The move was defended by some, however, claiming that "hate speech" is a criminal act.
Moore, who raised millions for the National Health Service when the first national lockdown was introduced to help fight the coronavirus pandemic, died in hospital after testing positive for the disease last Tuesday.