Police Scotland - message for communities

Issued by Police Scotland

Around 9 March 2018 a number of anti-Muslim letters were received by some Members of Parliament and other general households in England, which were subsequently reported to police. As a result an investigation has been ongoing by Counter Terrorism Policing North East. To date no letters are known to have been received in Scotland.

The letters and associated national media coverage, including social media, has caused significant fears within various communities.

Police Scotland takes this matter very seriously. Although there are no reports of letters being received in Scotland, we fully acknowledge the concerns of our communities.

Police Scotland will not tolerate any attempts to target any community by individuals or group and we continue to work with all of our partners to resolve issues and address concerns. We have been monitoring the situation and linking in  with relevant forces nationally in order to continually assess our response. Our control room and frontline staff and officers have also been updated.

There will be extra attention and engagement by officers at relevant locations and communities, including places of worship on the date highlighted within the letters. We also ask all groups and organisations to reassure individuals and communities appropriately, should any concerns be raised.

We urge everyone to go about their business as normal however to remain vigilant and be aware of their surroundings. Any incident or suspicious activity should be reported to the police.

Thank you for your continued support in keeping all our communities safe.

If you have any concerns or information about suspicious activity please contact the Police on 101, Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, or in an emergency dial 999.