Police warn people mocking convicted drug dealer’s hairstyle they could be prosecuted

Gwent Police used 21-year-old’s mugshot in bid to track him down

Police in South Wales have warned members of the public who made fun of a convicted drug dealer’s haircut they could be prosecuted for their remarks.

Gwent Police used Facebook to appeal for information about Jermaine Taylor from Newport who is being recalled to prison after breaching his licence release conditions.

They shared the 21-year-old’s mugshot, which appears to show the man with a receding hairline, alongside the appeal in a bid to track him down.

His hairstyle attracted a slew of jokes and puns in the comments – with the image of Taylor having been liked more than 10,000 times, shared 14,000 times and commented on over 80,000 times.

Gwent Police sought to stop people mocking the man’s appearance by telling them they could face a criminal investigation for certain comments.

“Please remember that harassing, threatening and abusing people on social media can be against the law,” Gwent Police warned Facebook users.

“Our advice is to be as careful on social media as you would in any other form of communication.

”If you say something about someone which is grossly offensive or is of an indecent, obscene or menacing character, then you could be investigated by the police.”

Taylor, who was released from prison in December, originally received a three-year sentence for being concerned in supplying cocaine after being sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court in September 2017.

A spokesperson for Gwent Police said: "Gwent Police would like to thank everyone who has liked, commented and shared our post over the last few days – and welcome to our new international followers!

"We’re really grateful to everyone who is assisting us in locating Jermaine Taylor, and we must admit a few of these comments have made us laugh.

"However, when the line is crossed from being funny to abusive, we do have to make sure we are responsible and remind people to be careful about what they write on social media. Thankfully, in the 87,000 comments, this is a very small number and the majority are doing a great job helping us day to day!"

The force said they are still looking to locate Taylor and urged anyone with information on his whereabouts to please call 101 quoting 1900283943 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.