Partner of woman wrongly accused of child kidnap attempt says it's 'destroying' them
The partner of a disabled grandmother wrongly accused of attempting to kidnap a child in Cornwall has spoken out about how social media rumours have left him unable to sleep or eat. He said the shocking incident even resulted in her being assaulted.
Damian Noonan, 53, from Falmouth, says he can't even bring himself to tell his disabled partner about ludicrous claims across social media that she tried to kidnap a child outside of Wetherspoon in Truro on Sunday (January 19). It comes after police confirmed there was no evidence against the couple or of any kidnap attempt.
Social media posts were spreading like wildfire following the encounter, including pictures of the pair unfairly plastered across Facebook and other platforms, but Damian says they still have no idea why they were being accused of such things. The explanation he thinks is most likely is that his partner, aged 61, is "old fashioned" and may have been trying to direct the child back to safety.
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He added that following a recent stroke, his partner, who is from Poland and a mother-of-three herself with five grandchildren, is also having to relearn English which may have added to the confusion. "We just popped out for lunch and the next thing you know you've got gangs of people around you screaming and shouting," he said. "My partner didn't even know what was going on or what she had done wrong."
He spoke of the "terrifying" moment men, women and children gathered around them swearing and screaming. "They called the police and, thankfully they did, because they got us out of there," he said.
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"I haven't been sleeping much or eating much. I'm not sure if I can leave the house or if my partner will get attacked by some nutter at any point. She is recovering from a stroke and I'm keeping a lot of this from her because she doesn't even know what went wrong.
"She just thinks there's a load of mad men out there and doesn't even know what it is about. This is beyond her comprehension."
He said he went to work on Monday not knowing posts with their pictures had been shared on social media and was asked about it by his manager. "I've had to go through the whole story and people in the street, I've had to go through the story for them. It's just insane."
Describing the moment he joined his partner outside of the pub he described a "drunken mob" shouting and taking photos. "They were all shouting, 'you're going on social media' and thinking it was hilarious and it has just gone beyond anything I could have ever even imagined."
He said people were quick to make assumptions about his partner as she wasn't speaking and walks with a limp but explained she is disabled and is recovering from a stroke alongside having to relearn English as a result. "She's only a little lady and we were just getting surrounded by this drunken mob."
Mr Noonan said the alleged incident occurred moments before he had joined his partner, who was having a cigarette, outside but explained she is a "typical Polish grandma" and feels she would have been looking out for the child and directing them to safety. He says she was also physically assaulted during the altercation.
"I know it's quite an old-fashioned thing to do but she said in her broken way the kid was running and she just sort of shooed it back to where she thought it should be. Then she's getting shouted at and wasn't even given a chance to explain.
"All these people on social media are putting us in physical danger over nothing. I don't know if they think this is amusing to them or what but they are destroying us. I am in shreds."
Claire, Damian's sister, adds: "Anyone who knows the couple knows they would never abduct a child. There was clearly a misunderstanding that could have been resolved if the woman had not been hit, and the couple not been violently threatened at the scene.
"Our family have been deeply saddened by the incident itself, and the way the couple has been treated since on social media." On social media pages people claimed that CCTV showed his partner walking off with the child, but police confirmed there was no such issue.
A Devon and Cornwall Police spokesperson said: "Police were called to Lemon Quay, Truro, at around 4.35pm on Sunday 19 January following reports of a suspicious incident involving a woman and a child at a public house.
"Officers attended the location. No evidence of any wrongdoing involving the woman towards the child has been identified."
Regarding the alleged assault on Damian's partner, they said separately: "Police are investigating following reports of an assault on Lemon Quay, Truro, on Sunday 19 January. It was reported a woman was assaulted by another woman outside a public house. Enquiries are ongoing."