An FBI investigation has accused two Florida police officers of being involved in the Ku Klux Klan, WFTV reported.
Deputy Police Chief David Borst and Officer George Hunnewell of the Fruitland Park Police Department were outed as members of the decades-old white supremacist group in the FBI investigation, the details of which are expected to be released by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
The reason for the investigation was not immediately known. Officer Borst, of Wildwood, denied any ties to the KKK. But the 49-year-old officer resigned from his job last Thursday after requesting time to speak to his family, Fruitland Park Police Chief Terry Isaacs told the Orlando Sentinel.
"It's a tough situation. He's my assistant," Isaacs told the newspaper. "I'm not saying I believe him. I'm not saying I don't believe him. But I've read the report, and it's convincing."
Hunnewell, a former corporal, was fired on Friday. Isaacs said he chose to terminate Hunnewell after reviewing the officer's performance record, which was marred by five "letters of counseling" that indicated the officer was not living up to the department's standards, the newspaper reported.
Hunnewell was also demoted from corporal in 2013, the reasons for which were not immediately clear.
"I just had no faith in him," Isaacs told the Orlando Sentinel.
It is not illegal for a person to be a member of the Ku Klux Klan, a group with a history of violence against black Americans throughout the 19th and 20th centuries.
The FBI handed over its investigation to Isaac so he could determine how the findings might affect the public's perception of the police department. No other Fruitland Park officers were named in the report, FBI said according to WFTV.
But this is not the first time Fruitland Park officers have been tied to the KKK. In 2009, former officer James Elkins resigned after photos leaked of him in a white robe and pointy hood with a gun in his hand, the station reported. Elkins later admitted to the station he was a Klan leader.
