LARGO — Pinellas Sheriff Bob Gualtieri fired a detention deputy Friday after an internal investigation found he used a racial slur to describe black inmates.

A fellow Pinellas County Jail deputy reported Jorge Lopez, 30, after he repeatedly used the slur during a shift in January, even after the deputy told him to stop, Gualtieri said. An internal investigation revealed he had used the slur before, violating the agency's harassment and discrimination policy.

"Somebody like that has no business being in law enforcement, harboring those biased, prejudiced views," Gualtieri said, "so he needs to go."

Lopez, who was hired in March 2014, went up to the other deputy, a white man, in a control room at the jail and asked if a black colleague was around, Gualtieri said. The deputy told him no, and that's when Lopez launched into repeated use of the slur.

He said there were a lot of black inmates on the floor and that they "need to control themselves." Lopez only grew more aggressive when his colleague told him to stop, Gualtieri said.

The other deputy grew so frustrated he dumped Lopez out of his chair then reported it to his supervisor, Gualtieri said.

During the investigation, Lopez, who is Hispanic, first said he was teasing and using the word for shock value. He eventually apologized, saying the comments were "disgusting and disgraceful," Gualtieri said.

Last year, a Pinellas corporal resigned after an investigation revealed several derogatory images on his phone, including photos comparing black children to monkeys and criminals.

"We still have serious race issues in this country, and you're going to have people who have these views," Gualtieri said, "but when it gets exposed, we're going to deal with it."