POLICE are appealing for information after a Pride flag was stolen in Elgin.
The incident happened between 12am and 4.30am on Thursday, June 22, in the Morriston Road area of the city.
Police say both the flag and the flag pole were taken, with officers appealing for members of the public to come forward if they have any information about the theft.
Constable Ross Love said: “We are appealing to anyone who may have witnessed this incident or who may have been in the area at this time.
“If you saw anyone acting suspiciously around the area, please contact police.
“In addition, anyone with CCTV or dash-cams around this time is encouraged to review their footage as it may assist in our enquiries.”
It comes after Scottish Conservative leader and MP for Moray Douglas Ross was criticised for his comments about a drag queen story time event at Elgin Library earlier this month.
David Harrison, the chair of Pride in Moray, the region's annual Pride event, said:
“The theft of this Pride flag in Elgin only goes to reinforce why we need Pride events more so in Moray now with this being the second incident in as many weeks against the LGBTQ+ community.
"Our concern with regards to Douglas Ross’ previous comments with regards to the most recent Drag Story Time in Elgin were that it would put fuel on the fire with regards to hate speech and anti LGBTQ+ sentiment, it goes to show that comments such as this can continue to have negative impact.
"And with the recent Neo-Nazi protest that also happened in Elgin recently it has certainly become apparent that Pride has become paramount to promote equality and inclusion for everybody.”
Anyone with any information is asked to call 101, quoting reference number 0647 of Thursday, 22 June, 2023.
Alternatively, Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 11.
