TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa Fire Rescue and the Tampa Police Department are investigating claims of racism at one of the city's firehouses, including looking into an alleged incident involving a stuffed monkey with a noose around its neck.
The allegations date back to the beginning of February and the onset of Black History Month.
Firefighter Andrew Dixon, who is Black, claims he and a coworker found the stuffed animal hanging from the rafters inside Station 13, located near Busch Gardens.
Dixon says the internal investigation into that incident ended with those responsible claiming the monkey was a tribute to the nearby theme park.
Then in mid-June, Dixon says things escalated.
He claims someone left a note in his locker that showed a photo of him with the word "monkey" written across his forehead.
In a statement, Tampa Fire Rescue said, in part: "An alleged incident of behavior unbecoming of the values of Tampa Fire Rescue occurred at a fire station. We take these allegations extremely seriously.
"Tampa Fire Rescue has turned the matter over to Tampa Police Department to investigate."
Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw confirmed his department is looking into it.
"I have assigned my best detectives to that case," said Bercaw, "And we’re taking it very seriously."
The president of Tampa's NAACP chapter says late last week they were contacted by the firefighter’s union.
It's still not clear whether this was going to be a topic of conversation, they said, along with the department’s ongoing issues with the city’s public safety plan.
The NAACP said they were planning a meeting as early as this Friday.