Police investigate 30ft swastika painted on business of Jewish MEP candidate

Police are investigating a 30ft swastika sprayed on the east London business headquarters of a Jewish MEP candidate standing for the Brexit Party.

Lance Forman, who owns the H Forman & Son smoked salmon company, discovered the antisemitic graffiti on Wednesday after returning from a business trip.

Forman’s father was a Shoah survivor who escaped Nazi Germany while his great-grandfather, who founded the business, fled the pogroms of Russia.

He told Jewish News: “They’ve all fled antisemitism to come to a safe haven in the UK […] When people paint a swastika on your building, it hits close to home.

“Who knows where it’s coming from. The fact of the matter is that antisemitism is [entering] the conversation and Jeremy Corbyn has not closed it down and has allowed it to fester.

“It could be something to do with me standing as a Brexit Party parliamentary candidate.”

The mural, which has since been painted over, was reported to the police at around 11.30pm on Tuesday.

A Met Police spokesperson confirmed no arrests have been made, and enquiries remain ongoing.  

Anyone with information should call Tower Hamlets Police on 101, with the reference 3799/8MAY or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.