Crossbow Cannibal police attack 'bad taste' YouTube video

POLICE in the Bradford "Crossbow Cannibal" case have attacked a Taiwanese animation published on the internet which graphically depicts the alleged murder of prostitute Suzanne Blamires.
By The Newsroom
Published 2nd Jun 2010, 14:32 BST
Updated 2nd Jun 2010, 20:06 BST

Bradford killings: Full coverage

The 33-second video, dubbed 'Crossbow killer was a student of murder', shows a man knocking a woman to the ground and killing her before returning to his studies.

The images, which are the work of Taiwan-based Next Media Animation Limited, show a woman resembling Ms Blamires, whose dismembered remains were found in the River Aire in Shipley, last week.

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Stephen Griffiths, 40, of Bradford, was last week charged with the murders of the 36-year-old and missing prostitutes Shelley Armitage, 31, and Susan Rushworth, 43.

In court, when asked to confirm his name, he replied: "Crossbow Cannibal".

The video, which has has gained almost 2,000 views on YouTube, was described by West Yorkshire Police as being "in extremely bad taste".

However, it has become the practice among professional Taiwanese media to "dramatise" news stories with graphic animations which are then republished online.

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A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "This video is in extremely bad taste, totally insensitive to the families and we have asked that it is removed immediately."

Next Media Animation describes itself as the largest full-service 3D animation studio in Asia, providing animation to order to some of the biggest entertainment and news providers in the world.

Michael Logan, of Next Media Animation, said the animation was made as part of Apple Daily Taiwan international news coverage of crime in the UK. The coverage was based on reports and information available at the time, he said.

He added: "As journalists, we're not insensitive to feelings of crime victims and their families. With all our news coverage we strive to report accurately and fairly."

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A YouTube spokesman said: "We have clear policies that prohibit inappropriate content on the site. Our community understands the rules and polices the site for inappropriate material.

"When users feel content is inappropriate they can flag it and our staff then review it as quickly as possible to see if it violates our terms of use. If users repeatedly break these rules we disable their accounts."

Related topics:YouTubeBradford