Public Enemy's Richard Griffin angrily took to Twitter Friday after Dallas police listed him in a new update on the investigation into the man who shot dead five officers.
The Dallas Police Department took the unusual step of listing details from shooter Micah Johnson's Facebook profile, without additional context, that included Griffin and biographical information seemingly cribbed from Wikipedia:
"The suspect’s Facebook account included the following names and information: Fahed Hassen, Richard GRIFFIN aka Professor Griff. GRIFFIN embraces a radical form of Afrocentrism, and GRIFFIN wrote a book A Warriors Tapestry."
The statement, "GRIFFIN embraces a radical form of Afrocentrism," appears verbatim on Griffin's Wikipedia page, the edit history for which showed no record of a recent addition to the profile Friday afternoon.
A Facebook profile thought to belong to Johnson did have a picture of him with Griffin, but the police statement didn't mention why they chose to include the Public Enemy member in the news release.
Facebook did not immediately respond to a BuzzFeed News inquiry, nor did the Dallas Police Department.
Griffin also did not immediately respond to BuzzFeed News' request for comment, however, he took to Twitter to voice his displeasure.
I will not sit back and let these people assassinate my character and tie me to the Dallas shootings.
As you seek to detained Me and or arrest me, I will not sit idle and watch you frame me.
The police and FBI have been watching me and tapping my phone they know who I talk too, I DO NOT KNOW THE SHOOTER.
It's unclear who the other person named in the release, Fahed Hassen, is and what his association with Johnson might be.