Manchester City Council investigating trespassing on Arena attack memorial
People were seen loitering on the future memorial site
Manchester City Council is investigating after people were seen trespassing on the future site of a memorial to the Manchester Arena attack.
The area, located near Manchester Cathedral, is currently closed off to the public and remains a building site while the memorial is constructed.
Once completed, the Glade of Light memorial will feature a marble halo to honour the 22 victims of the attack, which took place in May of 2017.
But families of two of the victims expressed their disgust when hundreds of people were seen on the site on Sunday (December 5). Reports of vomiting and drug consumption were also made.
Claire Brewster, who was seriously injured and lost her sister Kelly, and Caroline Curry, whose 19-year-old son Liam was killed in the attack called the trespassers "disgusting", and tried to guard the area themselves.
In response to the trespassers, Manchester City Council sent a team of security officers to protect the memorial overnight to stop people loitering.
Councillor Pat Karney added that an investigation would begin as soon as possible.
"The whole area is covered by CCTV and if footage shows it was due to the deliberate actions of mindless thugs, rather than a problem with the fencing itself, we will pass this information on to the police," he said.
"We utterly condemn this mindless and disrespectful behaviour and will not hesitate to take action against those involved."
Twenty-two people lost their lives when Salman Abedi detonated a homemade bomb at the end of an Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena in 2017.
Plans for a memorial were approved in January, and will have the names of the victims inscribed to preserve their memory.
Describing the plans, Manchester City Council said: "The Glade of Light is designed to be a living memorial, a tranquil garden space for remembrance and reflection.
"Its peaceful surroundings are also intended as the setting for commemorative events in the city relating to the attack."