The Bellevue, Idaho police officer who made a funny video ridiculing LeBron James and was then suspended from his job over it has now been fired.
Officer Nate Silvester’s friends believe the city was seeking for an excuse to terminate him because of political pressure.
As previously reported by the Gateway Pundit, Silvester was suspended for a week following a viral TikTok video in which he responded to a basketball player’s threat against an officer engaged in the fatal shooting of an armed juvenile who was attempting to stab another female.
Gannon Ward, Silvester’s best buddy, established a campaign to try and raise a few dollars so that his friend wouldn’t lose any money as a result of the joke. People came together and raised more than $500,000 for him and his family. He went on to get a book contract about his experiences as a cop in these tumultuous times.
Ward informed Gateway Pundit on Thursday that Silvester had been sacked.
The mayor, who is suspected of pressing for his dismissal, announced his dismissal on the city’s official Facebook page, claiming that he had broken policing standards and that it had “nothing to do with the tone or tenor of his speech that he posts online.” He wasn’t fired because of what he said; he was fired because he didn’t follow a clearly laid out and well-established policy.”
“The decision was solely made by the command structure within the Bellevue Marshals office and was not influenced in any way by me or by the City Council. We were informed of the decision, and as in the previous incident, left the final decision making to the Marshal and Deputy Marshal. The City Council and I respect the way the Marshal runs her department, and we are supportive of the decision that was made in regards to consequences for not following policy,” the mayor added.
Ward is skeptical about the statements.
“Nate has known since the LeBron James TikTock that his job was in jeopardy. He’s heard through the grapevine that the mayor was coming from his job, and wanted him fired. So really it was just a matter of time. Honestly, neither of us are that surprised it happened, just really upset that they were able to do something about it and blame something as trivial as using company equipment,” Ward told Gateway Pundit. “Obviously we were really hoping it didn’t get to this point. But that’s why I started a go fund me in the first place.”
Ward described Bellevue, Idaho, as “literally one of the only blue communities in the entire state.”
“Nate and I were talking on the phone this morning, and our honest opinion is that this is all over politics. Just because he supports policing, and police force in general. Nothing he has done deserves getting fired over,” Ward stated.
Silvester’s fundraising is still open for those who want to contribute.
Sources: thegatewaypundit.com (1), thegatewaypundit.com (2), facebook.com