Scumbags

Dec 2 2007 By Billy Paterson

Exclusive Yob Caged Over Graffiti On War Memorial In Vile Spree With Pal

A RACIST who desecrated a war memorial with a swastika and a vile anti-Jewish slogan has been jailed.

And a friend who joined him on his shameful booze and glue-fuelled rampage was behind bars awaiting sentence last night.

Andrew Young, 22, and Martyn Closs, 21, admitted a total of 11 vandalism charges but only Young admitted the war memorial desecration.

Young painted "**** the Jews" and "Hitler would be proud" on the monument at South Beach, Troon, Ayrshire.

Other graffiti included the letters SS - Hitler's elite troops - along with a devil's face. It cost £1000 to clean the memorial.

The yobs also targeted cars and shops in their wrecking spree. But they were easily tracked down after Closs scrawled his distinctively spelled first name on a wall.

The pair had left their prawn fishing boat berthed in Troon harbour before their rampage, Ayr Sheriff Court heard on Thursday.

The yobs, who had been drinking heavily and sniffing glue, told police the letters SS stood for Saturday Service - a gang of football thugs linked to Motherwell FC. But Closs, from Dunure, Ayrshire, uses the Bebo social networking website to boast of supporting Rangers football hooligans and Loyalist terror groups such as the UVF.

Young, from Troon, was jailed for 33 months. Sentence on Closs was deferred and he was remanded in custody.

Sheriff Colin Miller said: "This is an insult to those who died in wars - particularly World War II. It is an insult to those who survived and the Jewish community."

Neil Griffiths, of the Royal British Legion Scotland, said: "The desecration of a memorial is shocking. This kind of anti-Semitic and pro-Nazi graffiti is abhorrent."

Rabbi Nancy Morris, of the Glasgow Reform Synagogue, said: "It is disturbing that someone with seemingly no anti-Semitic involvement should go out of their way to write such comments.

"I think it is encouraging that the Scottish courts are taking anti-Semitic crimes so seriously."

'This is an insult to those who died in wars and the Jewish community' - Sheriff Colin Miller

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