RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- A North Carolina police officer was put on leave after a Confederate statue's toppling because he displayed a tattoo resembling an anti-government group's logo.
Chapel Hill Town Manager Roger Stancil issued a statement saying Officer Cole Daniels was placed on administrative leave with pay, effective Monday.
He said people had raised concerns that Daniels displayed "a tattoo that is associated with the '3 Percenters.'" The concerns caused police officials to wonder whether he could be an effective officer in the community.
An internal investigation will determine any disciplinary action.
The Southern Poverty Law Center says on its website that "III Percenter" groups active in North Carolina and elsewhere are considered anti-government "patriot" organizations.
Daniels was identified from a photograph of his forearm tattoo during the Aug. 20 protest that toppled the Confederate statue known as "Silent Sam" at the University of North Carolina.
A working phone number for Daniels couldn't be found through a public records search.
