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Senior Editor
Firefighter Finds Stuffed Monkey Hanging In Locker
Firefighter Finds Stuffed Monkey Hanging In Locker
KSDK - A St. Louis firefighter claims he's the victim of a hate crime, and now an investigation is underway at a time when race relations within the fire department are already strained.
The alleged victim in this case is a firefighter who has been working for the city for the past two and a half years.
He claims this past Saturday that when he went to his locker, inside St. Louis fire station number 13, he found a stuffed monkey hanging in his locker.
The station is at Shawmut and Ridge Avenue.
Pictures of the monkey show it to have a strap around its neck, suspending it from a bar. Because of the potentially inflammatory nature of the pictures, NewsChannel 5 and ksdk.com are not showing the pictures. The pictures were sent to NewsChannel 5 by F.I.R.E., an organization representing black firefighters in St. Louis.
The firefighter says this is not the first racially motivated incident he's had to endure.
He claims that firefighters, within his fire house, broke into his home back in August, hoping to prove that he was living in Illinois instead of in the city. And he claims that top fire department brass, including a deputy fire chief, had knowledge of the break in, but did nothing.
The city's Public Safety Director, Charles Bryson, says the city is currently investigating both claims.
Bryson was notified of this latest alleged incident on Sunday.
He says an internal fire department investigation is now underway, with a racially diverse team of investigators looking into the matter.
And he says the city's new Fire Chief, Dennis Jenkerson, is heading up the investigation
Chief Jenkerson told NewsChannel 5 that it appears "there was no noose," though the pictures show a strap, similar to a seat belt or clothing. Next to the monkey can be seen a rope hanging from the bar, which is tied with a large loop on the end.
And Jenkerson says while his department is taking the claim seriously, he believes it likely involves a "misinterpretation."
But Jenkerson says all three shifts at fire station 13 still have to be interviewed.
Once the fire department's internal investigation is over, the findings will be reviewed by the city's legal department, and could possibly be handed over to the police department.
Firefighter Finds Stuffed Monkey Hanging In Locker
KSDK - A St. Louis firefighter claims he's the victim of a hate crime, and now an investigation is underway at a time when race relations within the fire department are already strained.
The alleged victim in this case is a firefighter who has been working for the city for the past two and a half years.
He claims this past Saturday that when he went to his locker, inside St. Louis fire station number 13, he found a stuffed monkey hanging in his locker.
The station is at Shawmut and Ridge Avenue.
Pictures of the monkey show it to have a strap around its neck, suspending it from a bar. Because of the potentially inflammatory nature of the pictures, NewsChannel 5 and ksdk.com are not showing the pictures. The pictures were sent to NewsChannel 5 by F.I.R.E., an organization representing black firefighters in St. Louis.
The firefighter says this is not the first racially motivated incident he's had to endure.
He claims that firefighters, within his fire house, broke into his home back in August, hoping to prove that he was living in Illinois instead of in the city. And he claims that top fire department brass, including a deputy fire chief, had knowledge of the break in, but did nothing.
The city's Public Safety Director, Charles Bryson, says the city is currently investigating both claims.
Bryson was notified of this latest alleged incident on Sunday.
He says an internal fire department investigation is now underway, with a racially diverse team of investigators looking into the matter.
And he says the city's new Fire Chief, Dennis Jenkerson, is heading up the investigation
Chief Jenkerson told NewsChannel 5 that it appears "there was no noose," though the pictures show a strap, similar to a seat belt or clothing. Next to the monkey can be seen a rope hanging from the bar, which is tied with a large loop on the end.
And Jenkerson says while his department is taking the claim seriously, he believes it likely involves a "misinterpretation."
But Jenkerson says all three shifts at fire station 13 still have to be interviewed.
Once the fire department's internal investigation is over, the findings will be reviewed by the city's legal department, and could possibly be handed over to the police department.