Eni Aluko says ‘actions online do not come without consequences’published at 10:29 GMT
10:29 GMT
Thomas Mackintosh
BBC News
Image source, PA Media
After Joey Barton was convicted, football pundit and ex-England star Eni Aluko said she was “glad justice had been served”.
Barton compared Aluko and commentator Lucy Ward to serial killers Fred and Rose West.
Quote Message
Social media is a cesspit
Eni Aluko
In a statement, external released after Barton’s conviction, qualified lawyer Aluko said: “Too many people feel they can say things to others they wouldn’t dream of saying in real life under the guise of freedom of speech.
“This is a reminder that actions online do not come without consequences. The messages directed at me, Lucy Ward and Jeremy Vine by Joey Barton were deeply distressing and had a real damaging impact on my life and career.”
Barton also posted that Aluko was in the “Joseph Stalin/Pol Pot category”, saying she had “murdered hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of football fans’ ears”.
Jurors found him not guilty on the comparison to the 20th Century dictators and the Wests, but ruled a superimposed image of Ward and Aluko – imposed on the Wests who tortured and raped a number of women between 1967 and 1987 – was grossly offensive.
Barton was also convicted over a post in which he claimed Aluko was “only there to tick boxes” as he criticised diversity schemes.