(CNN) — Atlanta police have launched an internal investigation into filmmaker Tyler Perry’s claim he was racially profiled by two white officers who pulled his car over, the police department said.
Perry, one of America’s most successful film and television producers, put a post on Facebook on Sunday describing a tense encounter with police, which he suggested “could have turned for the worse.”
“It was so hostile,” wrote Perry, who is African-American. “I was so confused. It was happening so fast that I could easily see how this situation could get out of hand very quickly. I didn’t feel safe at all.”
The Atlanta Police Department gave a statement to CNN on Wednesday confirming that two officers recently “encountered Mr. Tyler Perry during a traffic stop.”
“Mr. Perry’s concerns, as recently expressed by him publicly, will be the basis for referral of the matter to the department’s Office of Professional Standards,” the statement said. “OPS has opened an investigation to determine if Mr. Perry’s claims can be substantiated, and whether any departmental policies or procedures were violated during the stop.”
The investigation began Tuesday, and no action has been taken against the officers involved, a police spokesman said.
Perry acknowledged that he made a left turn from a right lane, which a police officer told him was illegal and the reason for stopping him. It was a practice recommended by his security team in case he was being followed, Perry said.
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