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Police investigate classroom jibeFour police officers were put on the case when an 11-year-old boy called a schoolfriend 'gay' in an email.Two officers called at the Merseyside home of George Rawlinson saying they were investigating a 'very serious' homophobic crime.The primary school pupil had used the comment in an e-mail to a 10-year-old classmate.Cheshire police launched the investigation, which included two other officers visiting the school, after a complaint from the parents of the 10-year-old boy.They said their son had been called a 'gay boy' and were concerned that there was more to the comment than playground banter and that their child was being bullied.George told his parents that the comment was in no way meant to be homophobic and that he had simply been using the word 'gay' instead of 'stupid'.George's father Alan said his son was terrified when the police arrived at their home."George was really upset, he thought he was going to be locked up. This just seemed like a huge waste of resources for something so trivial."Inspector Nick Bailey of Cheshire Police said: "The parents of the boy believed it was more sinister that just a schoolyard prank."We were obliged to record the matter as a crime and took a proportionate and maybe old fashioned view. Going to the boy's house was a reasonable course of action to take."
