A landlady has defiantly displayed her Gollies dolls in her pub, despite police seizing the toys just days ago as part of alleged "hate crime".
Police stormed Benice and Chris Ryley's pub, the White Hart Inn, in Grays, Essex, last week taking away 20 of the dolls that were displayed behind the bar.
Benice, 61, has said that they have long displayed a collection of the controversial dolls and had been given them as gifts from customers over the years. But on April 5, five officers arrived at the pub following reports of a hate crime at the property, the Mirror reports.
Ms Ryley has run the pub for the last 17-years with her husband Chris and claims to "pride ourselves on welcoming everybody". However, since the police visit she has placed some of the ones that weren't confiscated back onto the shelves.
She has also put a sign on the door of the pub saying: "We have golly dolls displayed inside on our shelves. If you feel offended. Please do not enter."
Gollies dolls became popular in Britain in the 1970s but came to be considered a racist caricature of black people. Images from the pub show some of the dolls being hung by their necks from the top of the bar.
Ms Rylely told the MailOnline : "The whole thing is ridiculous. It's political correctness gone out of control.
"I'm not going to let the authorities intimidate me and I'm proudly putting my other gollies back on display in the pub.
"I'm still shocked that six officers came to my pub last week, surrounded me and took away my collection of gollies.
"I've not committed any crime and haven't set out to offend anyone. These gollies are a part of the pub, the customers love them, and they are a reminder of our childhood."
It's alleged that Essex Police's actions came under scrutiny by the Home Secretary who has believed to have said that "forces should not be getting involved in this kind of nonsense".
Yesterday, Essex Police said it was "categorically untrue" that they had been contacted by Suella Braverman's office. A spokesperson added that they "maintain operational independence from the Home Office".
Chris was in Turkey at the time police said that they would like to question him about a "hate crime" when he returns in May. The raid comes after the couple refused to remove the dolls after the local authority received a complaint in 2018.
A spokesperson for Essex Police said: "We are investigating an allegation of a hate crime in Grays. The report was made to us on 24 February after a member of the public reported being distressed after attending a venue off Argent Street.
"The investigation is being carried out under Section 4(a) of the Public Order Act 1986 and Section 31 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. We have regularly discussed the progression of this case with the Crown Prosecution Service and on Tuesday 4 April, five officers visited a location off Argent Street, Grays, and seized several items in connection with that investigation.
"No one has been arrested or charged in connection with the investigation and our enquiries are ongoing.
"The force is proud of the work we do to prevent crime, tackle offenders and build trust and confidence in all our communities. We are aware some elements of the media have reported that Essex Police has been contacted directly by the Home Secretary in relation to this investigation.
"At the time of writing, this is categorically not true. As a result, we would ask all media reporting this to amend their news reports immediately.
"In addition, as is the case in all investigations across every police force, we maintain operational independence from the Home Office which ensures that every investigation is carried out without fear or favour."
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