Count Dankula GoFundMe: 'Nazi pug' man Mark Meechan raises £100,000 in bid to appeal court conviction

Mark Meechan said he was wrongfully convicted
Go Fund Me
Martin Coulter25 April 2018

A man fined £800 for filming a pet dog giving Nazi salutes and posting the footage online has raised more than £100,000 to fund an appeal against his conviction.

Mark Meechan recorded his partner's pug responding to statements such as "gas the Jews" and "sieg heil" by raising its paw before putting the clip on YouTube in April 2016.

He was found guilty of breaching the Communications Act by posting material that was "grossly offensive" and "anti-Semitic and racist in nature", in an offence aggravated by religious prejudice, following a trial at Airdrie Sheriff Court.

Meechan, 30, said he made the video as a joke to annoy his partner and has raised issues about freedom of speech.

He has found support among British comedians such as Ricky Gervais, David Baddiel and parody news presenter Jonathan Pie, on the basis of "freedom of speech".

The 30-year-old has also received support from Tommy Robinson, founder of the EDL, on the same basis.

Meechan emerges from court
PA

Following his sentencing on Monday, an online fundraiser was launched to help pay the costs of an appeal, estimated to be £100,000, and surpassed the target within 24 hours.

The GoFundMe page, set up by Meechan and featuring an image of him and a pug, reads: "This conviction will be used as an example to convict other people over the things they say and the jokes they make, it sets a standard where courts will be able to willfully (sic) ignore the context and intent of a persons (sic) words and actions in order to punish them and brand them as criminals.

The dog was taught to perform a Nazi salute
Youtube/CountDankula

"This is the amount that has been quoted by my lawyer, the reason it has been quoted so high is my lawyer wishes to bring in top legal representatives to ensure that we have the highest chance of reversing the standard that this case sets.

"I cannot allow the two years of litigation I went through and having my life put on hold, to happen to anyone else."

Additional reporting by the Press Association

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