Five arrested for burning Grenfell Tower effigy

They handed themselves in

Police arrested five men on Monday evening over the burning of a Grenfell effigy on a bonfire. A video, circulated first on WhatsApp and then Facebook and Twitter, showed a gang of people laughing and joking as they placed a model of the Tower onto a bonfire. 72 people were killed in the fire on June 14 2017. In the background people can be heard joking "help me" and "stay in your flat," and laughing as the Tower is set alight. Another says: "Did it start on the 10th floor? We should have turned it upside down." [caption id="attachment_207320" align="alignnone" width="1200"] (Credit: Kay Oldroyd)[/caption] Cheering can be heard when the effigy collapses. Such was the public outcry over the video that even the Prime Minister Theresa May responded, condemning it as "utterly unacceptable." Then, at 10pm on Monday night, five men handed themselves into a south London police station. Two of the men are aged 49 and the others are 19, 46, 55. They were all arrested on a public order offence and taken into custody by the Met Police. Earlier, Scotland Yard said its Grenfell Tower investigation team was "taking this matter very seriously. Any offences that have been committed will be fully investigated." Commander Stuart Cundy said: "I am frankly appalled by the callous nature of the video posted online. "So many people lost so many loved ones, and many more have been deeply affected. To mock that disaster in such a crude way is vile." London Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton said: "This is an appalling and disturbing video. "It cannot be justified on any level."