LONDON – A Facebook fan page that glorified a dead killer was removed by its creator Thursday after it drew sharp criticism from Britain’s prime minister and put the social networking site in an uncomfortable situation.

The Facebook site “R.I.P. Raoul Moat You Legend” had attracted 38,000 fans, scores of comments praising Moat — and outrage from politicians. Facebook had refused to remove the page even after Prime Minister David Cameron condemned.

Despite the mounting pressure, Facebook said the page, while controversial, did not violate its rules. But its creator, Siobhan O’Dowd, took it down, saying she was surprised by the negative reaction.

“To be honest, I didn’t think this would be the kind of reaction I would get,” O’Dowd said.

O’Dowd said she was planning to start a new Moat page.

“We don’t condone what he did, as what he did was wrong,” she said. “I feel sorry for the families, but he was still a human being at the end of the day.”

Moat, a former bouncer, had just been released from a prison term for assault when he shot his ex-girlfriend, killed her new lover and seriously wounded a policeman earlier this month. After a week on the run, he took his own life last Friday when cornered by police.

“I cannot understand any wave, however small, of public sympathy for this man,” Cameron told the House of Commons on Wednesday.

Facebook defended the Moat tribute page, saying it could help provide a forum for debate.

“Facebook is a place where people can express their views and discuss things in an open way as they can and do in many other places, and as such we sometimes find people discussing topics others may find distasteful,” the company said in a statement Thursday. “However that is not a reason in itself to stop a debate from happening.”