A retired British police officer's uncovered alleged messages about the 2017 Grenfell tower tragedy have sparked outrage, reports revealed on Sunday.
The ex-sergeant – who served at Gwent police in Wales for 30 years - allegedly sent an image to his former colleague of the tower blaze which killed 72 people - including children - entitled 'The Great Muslim Bakeoff', The Sunday Times reported.
The former officer also sent other racist images targeting Muslim women, the newspaper alleged.
The Grenfell tragedy – which revealed widespread flaws in building regulations - was the UK's deadliest fire in a residential building since World War Two.
It left 72 people dead, the majority of whom were Arab, African, and/or Muslim.
"Absolutely shocking! I'm not sure what sort of people are in police and we know there are good ones out there BUT all you keep hearing about these days are how police officers are the one's upto no good!! Shame on this police officer. Disgusting!," activist Sadie Jones wrote.
Some people also questioned how they could trust the police after hearing such news.
"I am so appalled… how can we trust the police when they refer to Grenfell fire as the Great Muslim Bake Off… Never will be able to feel safe with the police," Twitter user Maryam Omar tweeted.
The former officer's messages were found as the phone of the late retired officer Ricky Jones - who committed suicide after serving for the Gwent Police Force - was investigated.
Whatsapp and Facebook messages on Jones' phone allegedly showed members of the police force discussing the sexual harassment of junior female colleagues, leaking sensitive police material, and sharing pornographic material.
Messages also revealed corruption alongside racist, homophobic and misogynistic abuse among officers.
Former women officers who raised complaints - including on sexual assault - at the force were also silenced and dismissed, they told The Sunday Times.
"[Women were] dismissed to keep them quiet… it’s a small force so they manage to hide things well," ex-officer Rachel said.
"They're made out to be liars or mental… anything so they don’t have to be believed," former officer Sarah added.
The former chief crown prosecutor for Northwest England, Nazir Afzal, has called for "a public inquiry into police culture nationally", citing concerns that such issues are “prevalent everywhere” in the police force.