PNNL says online posts linking a Tri-Cities employee to the Proud Boys are unfounded

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory says that allegations posted on Twitter about one of its employees are not valid.

The lab posted the results of its inquiry on Twitter, saying “We recently received allegations of inappropriate affiliations and activities of a PNNL staff member.”

The tweets it looked into said a PNNL employee was a member of the Proud Boys, which has been accused of being a white supremacist hate group. The tweets included a picture showing a person purported to be the employee in the distance at a rally and photos of weapons.

The posts and the account that posted them appear to have been removed.

The Proud Boys were in the news after the presidential debate, when President Donald Trump was asked about denouncing white supremacy and he named the group and said, “Stand back and stand by.” A day later the posts allegedly linking the PNNL employee to the Proud Boys appeared online.

PNNL has closed its inquiry into the matter and posted Wednesday that it “promotes a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment and takes harassment and hate speech very seriously.”