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It was a grisly shooting spree. Raoul Moat, a nightclub doorman, captured U.K. headlines after killing his ex-girlfriend's partner, injuring her, blinding a police officer and finally taking his own life.
After his death, his memory lived on in a Facebook page with 38,000 fans and dozens of comments enthusiastically praising the deceased killer. The page, titled "R.I.P. Raoul Moat You Legend," horrified many, including British Prime Minister David Cameron who condemned it and praised a lawmaker who insisted the Facebook page be removed.
"I
cannot understand any wave, however small, of public sympathy for this
man," Cameron said. "It is absolutely clear that Raoul Moat was a
callous murderer — full stop, end of story."
After
his remarks, a U.K. official contacted the social networking site to
voice Cameron's concerns. In response, Facebook issued this statement
explaining why they would not remove the page:
Facebook is a place where people can express their views and discuss things in an open way as they can and do in many other places, and as such we sometimes find people discussing topics others may find distasteful. However that is not a reason in itself to stop a debate from happening.
However,
in a surprise move, the creator of the Facebook page has just deleted it, bowing to public pressure.