Florida Officer Fired After Pulling Service Weapon to Reenact Scene From Training Day

A Florida sheriff’s deputy has been fired after he allegedly waved his police-issued gun and taser while reenacting a scene from the Denzel Washington movie Training Day, PEOPLE confirms.

According to a Lake County Sheriff’s Office internal affairs report from obtained by PEOPLE, David Zipes allegedly pulled out his service weapon and taser in the parking lot of a Lake County Sheriff substation on February 16. He then recited profanity-laced lines from the film.

In the 2001 crime thriller, Washington plays a crooked narcotics detective. In one scene, the character rubs two guns together and crosses them over each other as he confronts a suspect. The internal affairs report alleges Zipes admitted he was reenacting the scene.

Zipes allegedly told investigators that he was just trying to “be funny and fit in.”

At least two co-workers and a deputy trainee witnessed the incident. Zipes was fired on April 21; he had only been with the agency for about 16 months.

According to the report, this is not the first time Zipes has allegedly jokingly pulled out his firearm while on duty. The report states he had also pretended to grab his gun while talking to a pizza delivery driver and joked that he was Markeith Loyd, a Florida man who is accused of killing a police officer.

• Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Zipes told investigators that he had no malicious intent behind the February 16 incident. “He stated that he was trying to lighten the mood,” the report states. Investigators say that he also said he wanted to be the “center of attention.”

The internal affairs report only addressed the status of Zipes’ employment. He has not been charged with any crime.

A phone number for Zipes has been disconnected, and he did not respond to PEOPLE’s email request for comment.