A police officer in North Carolina has been put on paid leave after being photographed with a tattoo associated with a national antigovernment group, throwing his ability to “function effectively” as a cop into question, according to the department’s chief.

Chapel Hill Police Officer Cole P. Daniels, who joined the department in 2014, was placed on leave Monday after being photographed earlier this month with a distinctive tattoo – a Roman numeral three encircled by stars — associated to the Three Percenters, a group considered by the Southern Poverty Law Center to be among the antigovernment movement that had a resurgence following the election of President Obama in 2008.

Daniel Hosterman, a photographer in Durham, told The News & Observer he took a photograph of Daniels as he stood near the Silent Sam Confederate monument, which was toppled on Aug. 20 by protesters on campus at the University of North Carolina.

But Chapel Hill’s police chief has known about the tattoo since at least February, according to the newspaper. That’s when Police Chief Chris Blue left a voicemail for Megan Squire, a computer science professor at Elon University who gave a presentation to UNC-Chapel Hill students that included a photograph of Daniels’ tattoo that was taken at a rally in June 2017, the News & Observer reports.

“I’m calling you to thank you for calling attention to a tattoo that one of my officers has that apparently slipped through our cracks,” Blue told Squire on the voicemail. “I would love to hear a little more about how you came across the picture depicting him and share a little bit about my thoughts on how we move forward.”

Squire — who had been dealing with backlash from a Wired profile on her database that tracks far-right extremists — didn’t return Blue’s message, which she regrets.

“I think it was a missed opportunity for me as an educator,” Squire, 45, told the newspaper.

Blue confirmed that Daniels had been placed on administrative leave in a statement to the News & Observer, but did not respond to questions from the newspaper about his response to the initial report of Daniels’ tattoo in February.

“The pervasiveness of the concerns raised by many regarding his display of a tattoo that is associated with the ‘3 Percenters’ has caused the Department to question his ability to function effectively as a police officer within this community,” Blue’s statement read. “Therefore, the Police Department initiated an administrative investigation in accordance with our Town’s Personnel Ordinances and policies and procedures.”

Daniels will remain on leave pending the outcome of the investigation. Any disciplinary action will be taken after consulting with the town’s manager and attorneys, Blue said.

Messages seeking additional comment from Blue were not immediately returned Friday, but a Chapel Hill spokeswoman referred The Post to a statement from Town Manager Roger Stancil that indicated no further information will be released on the personnel matter.

“We are making note of your interview request,” spokeswoman Catherine Lazorko wrote in an email. “After any major community event, we take the time needed to evaluate many aspects — including our roles in public safety aspects, successful coordination with partnering agencies, and the costs associated. We are doing this now. We will follow up after this process to provide relevant information to the public and to schedule interviews with the media.”

The Three Percenters, meanwhile, is a collection of “patriotic citizens who love their country, their freedoms, and their liberty,” according to its website.

“We are committed to standing against and exposing corruption and injustice,” the website continues. “We are NOT a militia … Being a Three Percenter is a more of way of life rather than a club to join.”

The group also denounces its “anti-government” label, instead insisting its members are “very pro-government, so long as the government abides by the Constitution,” according to its website.

“Our goal is to utilize the fail-safes put in place by our founders to reign [sic] in an overreaching government and push back against tyranny,” the website continues. “… There is often a misconception that we are wanting to overthrow the government. This is simply not true and a false rumor to try and paint our movement as anti-government.”