Zionsville firefighter on administrative leave for social media posts about George Floyd

ZIONSVILLE, Ind. (WISH) — A firefighter in Zionsville is on administrative leave for allegedly posting George Floyd conspiracy theories on social media.

Screenshots from Battalion Chief Scott Mamaril’s Facebook account were submitted and posted on the Indiana Progressive Liberals Facebook page.

Both his Facebook page and LinkedIn account appear to have since been deleted.

News 8 exchanged messages with the woman who tipped off the group. She declined to be interviewed but said she’s a resident of neighboring Hamilton County and was disgusted when someone sent the posts to her.

Mamaril was promoted to his current position at a town council meeting in October 2019. Last year, he made slightly over $82,000.

News 8 reached out to the town of Zionsville on Monday afternoon.

Both Fire Chief James VanGorder and Mayor Emily Styron declined to be interviewed but released a statement Tuesday afternoon:

“The Town of Zionsville has been made aware of an employee allegedly posting offensive and damaging statements on a personal social media account. The Town of Zionsville does not condone the statements that appear to have been made by the employee and the statements do not reflect the Town’s values in any way. The Town of Zionsville holds employees to the highest of standards and code of conduct when posting on social media and we strongly reaffirm our commitment to responsible and respectful social sharing. The conduct of employees on and off duty is something we take very seriously. The employee has been placed on administrative leave pending an outcome of an investigation. The Town of Zionsville does not typically comment on internal personnel matters and no further details will be made available at this time.”

News 8 spoke with a few people along Main Street on Tuesday afternoon.

Most said they didn’t approve of Mamaril’s post but also didn’t think he should be disciplined. Though some had worries his views might affect how he responds to emergencies involving minorities.

“We need to be able to say what we believe whether it’s agreed with or not,” said Zionsville resident Inga Smith. “But if it’s disagreed with who he works for, I understand letting him have punishment.”

“I don’t know if it’s appropriate for someone who is a public servant that actually works to protect people,” added Indianapolis resident Ron Day. “I don’t think that particular posting would warrant discipline.”

Zionsville resident Jessica Brewer admits she believes some of the conspiracy theories herself. She approves of the administrative leave while more is looked into.

“I’m not sure he should be punished because again it’s his opinion,” Brewer said. “He hasn’t acted on anything.”

New 8’s attempts to reach out to Mamaril were not successful.