A Snapchat troll who mocked the murder of George Floyd has been ordered to perform unpaid work.
Jordan McGhie sparked national fury after uploading a picture that showed him kneeling on a friend’s neck.
The image was captioned: “George Floyd Challenge 2020. Raise awareness.”
McGhie, 27, previously pled guilty at Dundee Sheriff Court to sharing the “grossly offensive, obscene or menacing” image on June 2 last year.
Sheriff Gregor Murray said on Tuesday: “I take a very dim view indeed of this offence.
“However, you have not offended for a number of years so you can, just, avoid a custodial sentence.”
‘Drunken gross stupidity’
The court was previously told how McGhie was forced to flee his home after the post went viral and prompted a public backlash.
Defence solicitor Katrina Clark said: “This was an act of drunken gross stupidity on his part.
“The sequence of events was that he had not even seen the video when he posted the image of him doing this with his friend.
“As a result of the reaction it provoked he then looked at the original video and immediately realised the seriousness of it and removed the post. It was removed within six minutes.”
‘Out your local racist’
Fiscal depute Carrie-Anne Mackenzie explained how a witness came across the post, which had also been uploaded to Facebook.
She told the court: “At around 7pm, the witness had been scrolling through their news feed and had come across the photo.
“This was accompanied by the status ‘out your local racist’.
“The photo showed the accused kneeling on another male’s neck imitating the recent death of George Floyd.”
McGhie, whose address is listed in court papers as Woodside Way, Glenrothes, admitted posting a racist and offensive image on social media at an address on Crossgate, Cupar on June 2 2020.
He admitted the offence was racially aggravated.
In July 2011, McGhie racially abused a 13-year-old boy during a bus journey in Fife.
Global protests
Mr Floyd’s death in May 2020 in America sparked global protests and vigils.
The unarmed-dad-of-two begged for his life and told police officers in Minneapolis he could not breathe as former police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck on a road.
In April this year, Chauvin was found guilty of murdering the 46-year-old.
McGhie was ordered to perform 200 hours of unpaid work.
