Three Denver Police officers have been fired after a group text thread was leaked that allegedly contained “derogatory” messages about illegal immigrants.
The department confirmed the firings to Fox News Digital.
According to authorities, on April 4, 2024, the Denver Police Department (DPD) learned of disturbing messages being shared in a group chat made up of Denver Police Officers who had graduated from the training academy together.
DPD immediately began investigating the matter and during the course of a thorough investigation, it was discovered that on March 27, 2024, three officers posted derogatory messages in a group chat.
All three officers, Rodrigo Basulto, Megan Joy and Scott Persichet, were fired “for cause,” according to the Colorado State Police Standards and Training Activities Report.
“The messages included a joke about going to a newcomers shelter for target practice,” authorities said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“Due to the egregious nature of the messages, the officers, who were still in their probationary period after graduating from the Denver Police Academy, have been terminated from the Denver Police Department, effective July 22, 2024.”
It was not immediately clear how the text messages were discovered.
In May, Denver city officials released a “playbook” to help other cities accommodate “immigrant newcomers.”
The 15-step “playbook” describes undocumented immigrants as “newcomers” in the first paragraph and offers several ways other cities can address the crisis by outlining best practices and procedures for integrating immigrants into communities.
The guide explains that calling immigrants “newcomers” is an attempt to recognize that those crossing the border are “newcomers to our city” and to adopt “more inclusive language.”
The surge in migrants has strained the city’s coffers, forcing Denver Mayor Mike Johnston to make millions of dollars in cuts to his budget to accommodate the migrants, including a cut of about $8.4 million (1.9%) to the Denver Police Department’s budget, Newsweek reported.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Johnston’s office for comment but has not yet heard back.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
