Denver Police officer fired after posting ‘Let’s start a riot’ on social media

DENVER (KRDO) -- UPDATE: The Denver Police Department said Tuesday that Officer Thomas McClay is no longer with the department after an investigation into one of his social media posts saying "Let's start a riot."

Just a day after DPD announced the investigation, it said in a statement that "the Internal Affairs investigation revealed that the officer violated the Department's social media policy, posted content inconsistent with the values of the Department, and the officer has been terminated."

McClay joined the department in 2019, according to a Facebook post.

Earlier Story

The Denver Police Department says Internal Affairs is looking into a post on Instagram that shows three DPD officers in tactical gear with a caption that says "Let's start a riot."

The post on Instagram, shared by an account named Tommy McClay, features the three officers standing on a sidewalk in their gear, and the hashtags indicate it was posted in Denver.

It's not clear exactly when the picture was taken, but it was shared at a time that Denver police officers have been engaged in violent standoffs with protesters demanding reform in the wake of George Floyd's killing.

Monday, DPD confirmed that the post "featuring 3 DPD officers posing in riot gear" is under investigation, which is also being monitored by the Office of the Independent Monitor.

The other two officers haven't been identified publicly.