Six Essex teens held after Polish man dies in suspected hate crime

Six teenagers have been arrested on suspicion of murdering a Polish man during an attack in Harlow, Essex.

The youths, five aged 15 and one16-year-old, were arrested in relation to the death of Arkadiusz Jozwik, 40, who was known to friends and family as Arek. All have been released on police bail pending further enquiries until 7 October.

Essex police say the attack was "apparently unprovoked" and are investigating "the possibility of it being a hate crime", reports The Guardian.

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The victim's brother, Radek, told The Guardian Jozwik was eating pizza in the street near a shopping area known as The Stow and was attacked after speaking Polish.

"They picked on him because of that. He does not speak much English," he said.

Jozwik reportedly suffered head injuries in the attack and was treated at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow before being transferred to Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, where he died on Monday.

A second man, aged 43, was also taken to hospital with suspected fractures to his hands and bruising to his stomach, and was later discharged.

Radek Jozwik said a number of residents have been the victim of race-related attacks in the area and that there had been a "surge in ill-feeling towards Eastern Europeans since the Brexit vote", the Daily Telegraph reports.