A cashier in Austin, Texas has been fired after writing a defamatory insult on a police officer’s receipt.
The officer, Nito Delgado-Eberhardt, wrote on Facebook that he was at Southside Flying Pizza and became uncomfortable when the cashier began treating him with hostility.
“Was hoping to get a quick slice for the road,” he wrote on Feb. 25. “Instead got a bad vibe from the cashier.”
After completing his purchase, he noticed that the phrase “pig ass motherf*cker” was typed on the bottom line of his receipt. Delgado-Eberhardt also says that the cashier took “a picture of the patrol car while flipping it off.”
“The receipt is proof after the fact that it was money well spent to learn about this place,” said Delgado-Eberhardt.
A representative with Southside Flying Pizza confirmed that the accused cashier has since been fired and that the restaurant will donate $1,000 to the Police Officers Memorial Foundation.
“Obviously we’re deeply appalled by the incident and that employee has been let go,” said Southside Flying Pizza District Manager David Hatley to Fox 7 Austin. “We’ve also already donated a combined $1,000 to a police memorial fund.”
Many expressed outrage on social media, according to KVUE, with citizens and officers alike pledging to boycott the establishment.
Austin Police Association President Ken Casaday took the opportunity to tell KXANthat one person’s behavior doesn’t speak for a business as a whole.
“Our officers have eaten there for years. I don’t think that’ll stop,” he said. “You know, the first 24 hours was pretty tough, a lot of officers were very angry. A lot of citizens were very angry. But … you can’t let one bad egg spoil the bunch.”
Casaday added:
“It is very insulting. It’s something you have to worry about when you eat out as much as we do because we work 10 hours a day, four days a week, so we have to kind of pick and choose the places that you trust to eat.”
The Austin Police Department released a statement focusing on the restaurant’s swift handling of the matter.
“It is a reflection of one employee’s actions, not that of the owner/s or other employees of the restaurant,” the statement read, in part. “When the incident was brought to the restaurant’s attention it was immediately addressed and a donation was made to a nonprofit that supports law enforcement.”
The Austin Police Association’s vice president led a group of officers to dine at the establishment on Feb. 27.