Wiltshire Police is investigating after a progress flag, which had been raised next to the Ludgershall‘s war memorial to mark Pride Month, was torn down and stolen in what is being called a “hate crime”.
Officers said a male suspect was seen using ladders from a nearby work van to access the flagpole and was driving a silver Honda Accord.
“Ludgershall Town Council really wanted to show they were a progressive council in a progressive town, but it seems we have a way to go,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
The progress version of the traditional rainbow flag includes extra coloured stripes to represent people of colour in the LGBTQ+ community, the transgender community, and those living with HIV and AIDS.
Anybody with information relating to the incident is asked to contact police.