Man who carved this tattoo could face prosecution

Lancing mum Mary Thomas was so distraught when she saw the five-inch high children's character on her daughter's right arm that she called police the very next day.

The tattooist created the shocking tattoo on her arm at a private address in Brougham Road, East Worthing, at a cost of 40, without permission.

Daughter Julie, who attends Durrington High School, has since said she wishes she could scratch it off with her fingernails. She said: "I did not think it would cause this much trouble, but it has."

Above the Pooh bear are the words Grandpa H - a tribute to her late grandfather Harry.

Mary said: "She says she loved her grandfather, but if she really loved him then she would not have done this. There are better ways to pay tribute to him."

The man is not thought to be one of the town's established, responsible tattooists who can legally only tattoo over 18s.

A police spokesperson confirmed a complaint had been received and said investigations were being carried out.

Mary, who lives in Penhill Road, Lancing, was doing a charity skydive in Salisbury on Sunday while her daughter was getting the tattoo done. The first she knew about it was when she and her partner got a phone call while driving home.

She said: "I got a phone call from a friend asking if we could pick Julie up as she had just had her tattoo done. I was shocked. I had to pull off the road because I was shaking so much. I was fuming.

I'd had a really good day, but it was ruined by this.

"When we got back home the tattoo caused massive arguments between me and my partner and we have since split up because of it. I then went and talked to my daughter.

"She said 'I thought you would be all right with it' but I had told her the night before that she was still too young to have a tattoo."

Mary said a friend had taken her daughter to the tattooist and left her there to have it done.

She said: "I did not know anything about it and I am totally distraught. Julie will have to go for blood tests to check that she has not caught anything. We are going to have to wait for three months for the results and that is going to be a big worry hanging over our heads."

Mary says her daughter now understands why she is so angry.

"At the time she did not think it was going to cause all this hassle but now she understands that young people must be protected from someone who is going to tattoo under 18s.

"I hope he gets stopped in his tracks. I do not want another parent to have to go through what I am going through now."