A Popeyes in St. Louis, Mo., is being investigated by the police after a sign was posted outside of its drive-thru lane that refused service to white people.
“Effective 6-1-21, this restaurant is under new management and will reserve the right to refuse service to white people. We apologize for any inconvenience. Signed, general manager, Mason,” KMOV, a local affiliate reported.
An image of the sign was shared on social media last week and resulted in backlash, which caused the restaurant to close last Wednesday.
However, surveillance video shows that the sign was not posted by a Popeyes employee; police and management think it was done by pranksters and the situation got accelerated.
“‘The manager did not post this sign and the business is not ‘under new management’ as alleged per our investigation,” said Chief Chris DiGiuseppi
of the Lake St. Louis Police Department, according to USA Today.People, outraged by the sign, told KMOV that they came to the location to verify the sign.
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“I came up to verify it for myself,” one resident said. “When I went to the drive-thru, you could see where the sign had been ripped off from the duct tape.”
“I was thinking, surely this is not true. What is this world coming to?” another resident said.
Because the situation is being investigated, Popeyes can not comment on the matter besides its prankster theory.
“It is good that the Popeyes did not do that, but that is not good for the community,” one male resident said. “You should not do anything like that. It is going to stir up problems.”
The Popeyes has also been a target of vandalism, and the authorities will be looking to see if there is a connection with the sign.