Sympathy for UK killer slammed by police
As thousands leave messages of assurance for Moat, victim's mother horrified at the support he is being shown
London: Britain's most senior police officer on Tuesday condemned the public outpouring of sympathy for Raoul Moat.
Dozens of tributes have been left for the 37-year-old at the spot where he took his own life, at his former home and online.
More than 21,000 people have so far signed up to the Facebook page entitled "RIP Raoul Moat You legend".
But yesterday Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson labelled the ghoulish tributes as "extraordinarily disappointing".
He said he struggled to understand the support for the fugitive who went on the run after shooting his ex-girlfriend Samantha Stobbart, 22, executing her partner Chris Brown, 29, and blasting PC David Rathband, 42, point blank in the face with a sawn-off shotgun.
Sir Paul said: "People really do need to think about what precisely they are saying about our society and individuals in it."
Tribute
Dozens of bouquets, a potted plant, a tealight and two plastic butterfly ornaments have been placed at the riverside spot in Rothbury where Moat shot himself in the early hours of Saturday.
About 50 bouquets have been left outside his former home in Fenham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. One card read: "We have all the good memories of growing up together and the fun times.
"A good mate, a good dad, good at school, well-mannered, hard-working businessman. That's the real Raoul Moat."
Another read: "We have felt your pain and anguish all week and our hearts were with you. You were just so misunderstood."
On Facebook thousands left messages paying tribute to the killer. Many of them riddled with swear words and spelling errors, praised him for evading police for so long. One user wrote: "R.I.P raoul moat x x x — true solider x x." Another commented: "You shall live on in evry1s shotguns!! Keep strong up there * shoot more police!!!"
There were those who disagreed, however. One user wrote: "He is a murderer. Killing 1 but could have been 3! Simple as that! The police shouldnt have tasered him, they should have shot him!"
Chris Brown's mother Sally also lashed out at the tide of tributes. She said: "I don't understand now, for some reason, why he is being praised and seen as some hero. It's wrong."
