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A MAN who launched a tirade of “grotesque racist insults” at a black train passenger is being investigated by police.
The drunken yob calls the other man a “monkey” and a “gorilla”, and threatens to take his eye out with a beer bottle.
Other passengers try to placate the man and urge him repeatedly to sit down and be quiet in mobile phone footage uploaded to YouTube.
Brandishing a bottle, the man tells a passenger: “See that, I will shove that in your fucking eyes.”
He adds: “I don’t like being rudely awaken by a mongrel.”
Other passengers say in fact he had fallen asleep on the victim of his rant.
The man, who speaks with a strong Irish accent, goes on to say he is not racist during the two minute, 46 second footage.
Train operator Southern said staff booted the drunk man off the London to Brighton service after a complaint.
He was cautioned for fare evasion and his details were taken but the alleged victim did not want to pursue the matter.
However, British Transport Police appealed for more information after seeing the video.
A spokesman said: “BTP officers are aware of the YouTube video, which was uploaded on May 26 and was recently brought to our attention by concerned members of the public.
“Everyone has the right to travel without fear of abuse or threatening behaviour and BTP takes this type of offence extremely seriously.”
Transport minister Norman Baker, MP for Lewes, told the BBC: “I’ve seen the clip on YouTube and quite frankly I’m appalled that this could happen.
"People are entitled to ride on the railway without fear of intimidation and grotesque racist insults that we’ve seen from this individual.”
In the clip, the man wears tracksuit bottoms, trainers and a hi-visibility jacket with the logo of internet firm NTL - which became Virgin Media in 2007.
A spokesman for Virgin Media said: “The NTL name hasn’t existed for six years and the jacket in the video bears no resemblance to the uniform of our engineers. We do not believe this person has any connection with us."
The drunken yob calls the other man a “monkey” and a “gorilla”, and threatens to take his eye out with a beer bottle.
Other passengers try to placate the man and urge him repeatedly to sit down and be quiet in mobile phone footage uploaded to YouTube.
Brandishing a bottle, the man tells a passenger: “See that, I will shove that in your fucking eyes.”
He adds: “I don’t like being rudely awaken by a mongrel.”
Other passengers say in fact he had fallen asleep on the victim of his rant.
The man, who speaks with a strong Irish accent, goes on to say he is not racist during the two minute, 46 second footage.
Train operator Southern said staff booted the drunk man off the London to Brighton service after a complaint.
He was cautioned for fare evasion and his details were taken but the alleged victim did not want to pursue the matter.
However, British Transport Police appealed for more information after seeing the video.
A spokesman said: “BTP officers are aware of the YouTube video, which was uploaded on May 26 and was recently brought to our attention by concerned members of the public.
“Everyone has the right to travel without fear of abuse or threatening behaviour and BTP takes this type of offence extremely seriously.”
Transport minister Norman Baker, MP for Lewes, told the BBC: “I’ve seen the clip on YouTube and quite frankly I’m appalled that this could happen.
"People are entitled to ride on the railway without fear of intimidation and grotesque racist insults that we’ve seen from this individual.”
In the clip, the man wears tracksuit bottoms, trainers and a hi-visibility jacket with the logo of internet firm NTL - which became Virgin Media in 2007.
A spokesman for Virgin Media said: “The NTL name hasn’t existed for six years and the jacket in the video bears no resemblance to the uniform of our engineers. We do not believe this person has any connection with us."
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