Wadesboro police officer under investigation for use of hate symbol

WADESBORO — A Wadesboro police officer is under investigation after a photo emerged of the officer holding up a hand sign considered a white supremacist symbol in a picture taken during the senior night ceremony prior to the Richmond Senior High School varsity boys’ soccer game Monday evening.

The picture, which was provided to the Daily Journal Wednesday evening, shows Officer Thomas Luckey standing alongside his wife and their son, a RSHS soccer player. In the photo, Luckey and his wife are displaying the “OK” hand sign at their waists, with the thumb and index finger forming a circle and the three other fingers pointing out. Their son is not making the hand sign.

The “OK” symbol has been used as a signifier of white supremacist sentiments in recent years, and in 2019 it was deemed a “symbol of hate” by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

“We take matters seriously, any type of accusation against a law enforcement officer,” Wadesboro Chief of Police Thedis Spencer said. “It is being investigated…it will be looked into and any information we obtain, I will definitely do a press release after the investigation.”

Wadesboro Mayor Bill Thacker said he spoke with Town Manager David Edwards and confirmed the investigation, but said he was unable to comment further.

An attempt to reach Luckey for comment via Facebook Thursday evening was not immediately returned. An additional attempt to reach his wife via Facebook was unsuccessful as of Friday morning.

There have been multiple complaints filed against Luckey, according to Spencer. Each one of those complaints were internally investigated.

The Anson Record has requested access to those complaints.

The picture of Luckey emerged early this week following the soccer game Monday evening. Spencer said he first learned about it on March 9.

According to the ADL website, the widely used “OK” hand gesture gained a new meaning in February 2017 starting with a hoax campaign on the website 4chan. An anonymous user announced “Operation O-KKK” and encouraged others to “flood Twitter and other social media websites…claiming that the OK hand sign is a symbol of white supremacy,” adding that this could help win the culture war with “leftists.” The user attached a graphic showing that this gesture forms the letters “W,” with the three extended fingers, and “P,” with the circle formed by the index finger and thumb along with the wrist, representing an acronym for “white power,” according to a screenshot of the original 4chan post captured by the ADL.

The hoax gained traction and soon lost its irony for many users, based on extensive tracking of its usage by various media sources. While the symbol still means “OK” for the general public, the ADL states that “a number of people on the far right began deliberately to use the gesture — typically making the sign while posing for photographs uploaded to social media — in order to continue the trolling and spread it further.”

Luckey has been accused of racial prejudice in the past. Last year, Mario Melton, a Marshville resident claimed he was falsely arrested by Luckey after a Sunday service in Wadesboro.

Melton, a U.S. military veteran, told The Anson Record in February 2020 he was acting out of concern for his nephew’s children when he approached Luckey in the parking lot of Harvest Ministries.

Luckey allegedly ordered Melton to back away or face arrest, but Melton said, “I am not afraid of you,” leading to a “tussling match” between the two. A video emerged showing Luckey repeatedly pushing Melton against the car. He was then tackled to the ground, handcuffed and detained in the police car. Melton was charged with a misdemeanor count of resisting a public officer.

Pastor Steve Adams was also handcuffed as he tried to intervene on Melton’s behalf, but he was later released. Adams later spoke in front of the town council criticizing Luckey for racially profiling Melton.

Anson residents gathered outside the police department on March 11, sharing stories about their experience with Luckey and calling on the department to fire him.

Anson County Commissioner Vancine Sturdivant stood with the residents, saying she was not there as a commissioner, but as a concerned citizen. Sturdivant claimed there have been frequent incidents with Luckey, but that his only punishment has been to be put on temporary leave then allowed to return a short time later.

Gavin Stone contributed to this report.