Probe into vile jibe at mum in food bank
A MUM has revealed she was the victim of a sick hate crime at a food bank.
Mehnaz Ali, 33, was speaking to staff when a man spotted a rucksack nearby and asked: “Have you left a bomb in there?”
The law student reported the despicable comment to police, who are investigating the incident.
It comes as a growing number of hate crimes against Muslims have been reported in the wake of the Manchester and London terror attacks.
Mehnaz, from Paisley, who has a four-year-old son, said: “Times have been hard since I separated from my husband.
“I was talking to a member of staff when a man who was there to use the food bank walked past and made the remark. I was devastated.
“I thought, ‘Is this another thing I just have to cope with? Do I just have to deal with this because of who I am or what I look like?’
“But then I thought, ‘I have gone through so much in my life, I am not putting up with that.’
“I needed to do something. I reported it to the police and they are looking into it.”
Mehnaz’s ordeal happened at the Central Baptist Church food bank in Paisley last Friday.
She said: “I have had all sorts of issues trying to make ends meet and trying to study.
“I shouldn’t have to put up with this as well.”
Islamophobic hate crimes have soared in the wake of the London Bridge terror attack.
Nationwide figures collated by the Metropolitan Police reveal there was a 40 per cent increase in racist incidents three days after the atrocity which left eight dead, compared with an average day before the attack.
Incidents where Islam was listed as a trigger showed a fivefold increase.
Mehnaz said the incident has left her feeling frightened.
She said: “It is still affecting me. I didn’t want to go out.
“I had an appointment the other day but I felt scared about going out at all.
“I would hate it if my son was there to see someone make comments like that.
“It’s totally unacceptable. The man was in his 20s or 30s. He should know better than to say something so offensive.”
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “We can confirm we received a report of an incident at a food bank in Lady Lane, Paisley, on June 9, where a man made an offensive comment towards a woman. Inquiries into the circumstances of the incident are ongoing.”
I thought, ‘I have gone through so much in life, I’m not putting up with that’ MEHNAZ