Providence will no longer use its ‘Dancing Cop’
By Alana Cerrone
@Alana_Cerrone
The City of Providence is no longer working with its ‘Dancing Cop’.
A spokesperson for Mayor Elorza’s office said Tuesday that ‘Providence’s Dancing Cop’, Tony Lepore, was informed that his services will not be continued.
The following statement is from Commissioner Pare:
"Mr. Lepore was informed today that the Providence Police Department will not continue to use his services. Recent statements made by Mr. Lepore gave the inaccurate impression that he represented the position of the Providence Police Department. Mr. Lepore was not authorized to speak on behalf of the Providence Police Department and his actions were, in my judgement, a disservice to the Department and to members of the Providence Community."
Last month, Lepore led a protest outside of the Providence Dunkin’ Donuts where one employee wrote ‘#BlackLivesMatter’ on a coffee cup, before handing it to an officer. He said he was outraged by the incident and wanted to see that employee fired.
Lepore, a retired Providence police officer, was known for his acrobats and whistle-blowing while directing traffic on the streets of downtown Providence.
On his Facebook, Lepore says, in part, “I had a meeting with the Police Commission and the Chief today at 11am. They degraded all the work I did for the street cops, and the work I did for the city for 30 yrs… I will stand behind my actions, and I would do it again. It`s about the men in the street not the puppets.”
© WLNE-TV 2015
