£40k raised ‘to clear name’ of farmer held over killing of suspected burglar
A CROWDFUNDING campaign for a farmer who was held for shooting dead a suspected burglar had last night amassed almost £40,000 within 24 hours.
Rob Lomas was taken in for questioning after Marcus Smith, 19, was found dead at his property on Wednesday morning.
A second teenager was found with a gunshot wound near the farm in Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire, though his injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.
Derbyshire Police yesterday said the 50-year-old had been released on bail pending further investigation.
In a bid to ‘clear his name’, Lomas’s son set up a GoFundMe page to raise £20,000. Within a day it had received almost
2,000 donations.
Joshua Lomas said the #freethefarmer campaign was ‘to support our family and my father, Rob, though this very difficult time’. He wrote: ‘Rob has the most steadfast loyalty you could ever wish for in a father and friend and has always been there for me, and all of his many friends.
‘As every farmer does, he works relentlessly in all weathers, but always makes time for a brew and a friendly humorous chat.
‘Rob, Kate (his partner) and I now need help in the coming weeks to clear his name. That’s why we need your kind and extremely valuable help.’
GoFundMe does not allow its platform to raise money for ‘the legal defence of alleged financial and violent crimes’. But a spokesman said the fundraiser did not breach its terms and conditions while Lomas had not been charged with an offence.
Contributors, some of them pledging hundreds of pounds, left messages of support before comments were switched off.
A separate GoFundMe page to pay for Mr Smith’s funeral has also exceeded its £6,000 target. Supporters left comments, paying tribute to the ‘loyal’ and ‘loved’ teenager.
Police confirmed officers had been called to reports of a burglary at the remote Peak District farmhouse at 3.30pm on Tuesday.
Less than ten hours later, there were reports of a second raid on the farmhouse at 1.20am. A police spokesman said they were ‘keeping an open mind’ as to whether the two incidents were linked.