Trial of man accused of ‘offensive’ Captain Sir Tom Moore tweet delayed

The trial of a man who allegedly sent a grossly offensive tweet about Captain Sir Tom Moore the day after his death has been delayed again.

Joseph Kelly, 35, denies sending the message “of an indecent, obscene or menacing character” about the fundraising centenarian on February 3.

Kelly, of Castlemilk, Glasgow, is on bail and was not present at Lanark Sheriff Court on Wednesday when the trial date of October 7 was pushed back to January 31, having previously been moved from the original date of June 17.

Another pre-trial hearing will be held on November 4.

The charge, under the Communications Act, reads: “On February 3 2021 at Waverly Court, Lanark, you Joseph Kelly did cause to be sent by means of a public electronic communications network a post to the public using social media that was grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character, and that did utter offensive remarks about Captain Sir Tom Moore, now deceased.”

Captain Sir Tom, who captured the hearts of the nation with his fundraising efforts during the first coronavirus lockdown, died in Bedford Hospital on February 2 after testing positive for Covid-19.

He walked 100 laps of his garden before his 100th birthday, raising more than £32m for the NHS.