Cambridge boy offered me £20 then burned it... it was just plain nasty
A HOMELESS man mocked by a Cambridge student who burned a £20 note in front of him has branded the act ‘just plain nasty’.
Ronald Coyne, 18, provoked widespread anger over his callous actions, after he offered the man some money before pulling the note back and saying: ‘I’ve changed it into fire.’
He was later thrown out of the university’s Conservative Association when footage of his taunts emerged.
A petition to have the first-year law student expelled had last night attracted more than 5,000 signatures.
Mr Coyne is said to boast about being the nephew of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon but the Scottish Government released a statement saying the two had never met and that he was a distant relative.
Yesterday, rough sleeper Ryan Davies, 31, said he was asking for donations on the streets of Cambridge when he encountered Mr Coyne, who was wearing white tie and tails.
‘There were some people going past and I was asking them for spare change,’ Mr Davies said.
‘I’m homeless. I asked one man for spare change. I was polite about it as I always am. He says, “let’s see what I’ve got” and pulls out a £20 note and went to pass it to me.
‘I couldn’t believe my luck. But then he pulled it back and lit it and said, “I’ll give you some change, I’ve changed it into fire”.’
Mr Coyne’s mother Sandra McLaughlin, of Livingston, West Lothian, said she ‘didn’t recognise Taunted: Ryan Davies, above, and the story in yesterday’s Daily Mail her son’ when the footage, filmed in the early hours of February 2 emerged.
In a yearbook entry from his time at Stewart’s Melville College in Edinburgh, the student describes himself as a fan of Donald Trump.
He adds that he is known for ‘flamboyant selfies’ and ‘never backing down in an intellec-punched tual fight’. Unemployed crane operator Mr Davies, who has been homeless for three months, said: ‘It was absolutely disgusting.
‘It was horrible, just plain nasty. I suppose it’s better than getting and kicked or even spat on because that has happened before.’
Mr Coyne’s college at Cambridge, Pembroke, yesterday released a statement in relation to the incident.
It read: ‘We are aware of the incident that took place in the early hours of Thursday, February 2, 2017. This incident has been referred to the university’s disciplinary process. We cannot comment further while this process is underway.’
Mr Coyne is yet to comment on the matter and has taken down all of his online profiles.
A Cambridge University spokesman said: ‘The university is committed to respecting the rights and dignity of all members of our community.
‘We expect our students to treat others with respect, courtesy and consideration at all times, and the university takes allegations of unacceptable behaviour very seriously. We do not comment on individual cases.’
‘Couldn’t believe it’