THE family of a man who died in the Shoreham Airshow disaster were “ripped to pieces” by the revelation two police officers took a selfie at the scene which contained a “grotesque” caption.

Benn Slade, the cousin of Mark Trussler, has told of the family’s distress after The Argus exclusively revealed two officers are being investigated for gross misconduct after they sent a Snapchat message from the disaster scene.

The Snapchat post was sent to another colleague within the force who contacted the police’s standards department.

The caption contained within the message was described as “grotesque” by Sussex's Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne.

Deputy Chief Constable Olivia Pinkney said the caption was "really upsetting".

Relatives were informed by family liaison officers on Monday, the pair used the offensive caption #humanbbq when sharing the private message.

Mr Trussler had taken his motorbike to the airshow, hoping to see the last flight of the Vulcan bomber, when he was caught up in the devastating plane crash last month.

Mr Slade, from Worthing, said: “Personally I have quite a rational approach because of my past experiences working in security with large volumes of people, so I have seen some nasty things and understand gallows humour.

“But there are some members of the family who have been absolutely ripped to pieces by it – what they cannot believe is somebody would attend something of that nature then take a video of it.

“To try and paint a picture, one of my relatives was unable to speak properly. She turned grey and started shaking when she heard about it.”

Sussex Police have said the two officers were “new in service” and have been assigned to duties away from public while the investigation continues.

Ms Pinkney will now decide whether the officers have a case to answer for gross misconduct. If so they then face either a fast-track or full disciplinary hearing.

Mr Slade, 43, said: “We trust in the disciplinary procedure and I am sure they will do something appropriate.

“What it does from our perspective is it seems to be opening up a wound again.”

He added: “To say I am saddened by it is an understatement. In my work I have witnessed people die before and I have had to be the responsible person on the scene.

“I have seen some odd things happen as a result of stress. I cannot condone it but I acknowledge people do stupid things.”

Mr Slade and his partner Holleigh Johnson are now raising funds for the families of the 11 victims by selling remembrance candles.

They have also organised a candlelit vigil to take place at 8pm on September 19 at the Old Tollbridge.

For more details of the fundraising and event visit the Worthing Watch Facebook page.

  • The Argus had chosen not to publish the hashtag used by the two policemen in their message within previous articles. However we changed our stance following its publication by a number of national media outlets and confirmation that all 11 families were aware of the words used in the Snapchat caption.