Officer No Longer With Force After Coffee Cup Hoax

A small-town police officer in Kansas is off the force because of a weird hoax involving a coffee cup. Herington Police Chief Brian Hornaday said Monday that the officer resigned after confessing that he had falsely claimed a McDonald's in Junction City gave him a coffee cup with the words "F---ing Pig" written on it, the Wichita Eagle reports. On Saturday, Hornaday shared a photo of the cup on the department's Facebook page, saying it was a "black eye" on Junction City. "This is now, absolutely, a black eye on law enforcement," Hornaday said Monday.

The 23-year-old officer is a former military police officer who joined the town's force two months ago, NBC reports. The chief said the cup incident was "completely and solely fabricated" by the officer. "The investigation that I conducted showed that this was meant to be a joke,” Hornaday said. "However, we can see that how something so serious can get so out of control very, very quickly." Franchise owner Dana Cook said Sunday that the restaurant has the "utmost respect for all members of law enforcement and the military." Cook said security footage was thoroughly reviewed to make sure that the words were not written by a McDonald's employee. (The officer's "joke" may have been inspired by a real incident in Oklahoma last month.)