Walkers pulls selfie advert after its hijacked by trolls with images of criminals

A Walkers promotion starring Gary Lineker that encourages Twitter (Frankfurt: A1W6XZ - news) users to send in selfies has backfired after being hijacked by trolls who uploaded images of notorious criminals instead.

The faces of prolific child abuser Jimmy Savile and serial killers Fred West and Dr Harold Shipman were among those inadvertently featuring in a video voiced by the former England striker.

The official Walkers Crisps Twitter account was offering fans the chance to win Champions League final tickets by tweeting in a selfie along with the hashtag #WalkersWave.

But the firm was left red faced when members of the public sent in photos of notorious criminals and dictators.

Soviet leader Joseph Stalin's portrait and a picture of Austrian rapist Josef Fritzl were also posted to the clip.

One Twitter user responded: "@walkers_crisps don't you check your competition entries?" Another wrote: "I'd suggest you vet this better."

Walkers apologised following the social media blunder and pulled the advert.

A spokeswoman for the company said: "We recognise people were offended by irresponsible and offensive posts by individuals, and we apologise.

"We are equally upset and have shut down all activity."

Lineker posted a cryptic tweet following the outrage: "Had an unusual day in some very strange company. I'm sure we'll wave goodbye to them all by tomorrow."