You are here

Police Investigate Ten Year Old Schoolboy Over Spelling Mistake

A spelling mistake has led to a 10-year-old Muslim schoolboy being interviewed by British police over suspected links to terrorism. The child, who cannot be named for legal reasons, mistakenly wrote that he lived in a “terrorist house” instead of a “terraced house” during an English lesson at his primary school in Accrington, Lancashire back in December. Counter terrorism legislation that was introduced last year demands teachers alert authorities if they suspect a pupil’s connection to any terrorist behaviour or radicalisation. RT reports: His teachers did not realise it was an error and reported the student to the police, in accordance with the 2015 Counter-Terrorism and Security Act, which states that teachers are obliged to alert the authorities to any suspected terrorist behavior. Seriously? Police interviewing a young boy and examining the family laptop? Because of a spelling mistake? — Andrew Stroehlein (@astroehlein) January 20, 2016 The following day, officers showed up at the pupil’s home to question him and examine his family’s laptop. The boy’s family initially thought the police were joking, but according to his cousin, the 10-year-old was traumatized by the experience. “You can imagine it happening to a 30-year-old man, but not to a young child,” [...]