A New York Corrections officer has been suspended and will soon be fired after posting a meme mocking the victims of the recent mass shooting in Buffalo, The New York Corrections Department announced on Tuesday.
An 18-year-old white supremacist, identified as 18-year-old Payton Gendron, dressed in tactical gear killed 10 people and injured three others in a racially-motivated attack on Saturday afternoon at a Buffalo, New York, supermarket in the heart of the city's Black community. 11 of the 13 victims were African-American.
Foster Shared a Meme Mocking Buffalo Mass Shooting
The offensive meme shared by corrections officer Greg Foster II showed a photo of a Tops Markets along with the caption, "Clean up on aisle 3, no wait 4, also on 7, 9, 12 and 13." Foster punctuated the meme with the comment, "Too soon? This should weed out some FB friends," followed by a laughing emoji.
According to state records, Gregory C. Foster II was employed as a corrections officer at the Attica Correctional Facility and was hired in 1997.
Department of Corrections Announces Foster's Suspension
The state's Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) said Foster, has been suspended without pay and that an internal investigation would "identify and discipline any staff who may have engaged" with Foster's Facebook post. The department also said it was seeking to terminate the employee.
"Early this morning, DOCCS had been made aware of a despicable social media post by an employee of the Department. The comments made by this correction officer are in violation of multiple Department rules and will not be tolerated," the department said in a series of tweets.
"This vile posting does not represent the morals and values of the thousands of staff members in the Department. The individual responsible has been suspended without pay and DOCCS will be seeking termination," the statement continued. "The Department has engaged the Civil Rights Task Force, which we are members of, for potential criminal prosecution. The Department has also launched an internal investigation to identify and discipline any staff who may have engaged with the posting."
