'Disrespectful' Starbucks worker sacked after drawing PIG on police officer's coffee cup

In a video, the cup can be seen - bearing an image of a smiling pig.

Mr Longoria described the incident as “discouraging and disrespectful", adding: “All I wanted was caffeine, but instead I left feeling uneasy."

The Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs branded the incident "disappointing".

While the union's president, Richard Pippin, said: “We hope this was an isolated incident and not reflective of the community values on which Starbucks was founded."

Starbucks' global communications director Jaci Anderson described the employee's drawing as "unacceptable".

She said: "We have reached out to the customer several times and to leaders in the Sheriff’s Department to apologise.

“Every customer should always be made to feel welcome in our stores.”

But the global coffee chain has insisted the doodle was not intended to cause offence.

Ms Anderson claimed the drawing was not intended for the officer and was in fact a reference to a viral internet meme known as "John Pork".

The bizarre image depicts a pig's head photoshopped onto the body of a man, and exploded on social media through a surreal trend known as "John Pork is calling", where users posted images appearing to receive calls from the character.

The Starbucks executive said the staff member had been drawing on cups in the store to lift her colleague's spirits, however a “series of unfortunate events” led to the cup being given to the officer.

The police department confirmed that Sheriff Robert Luna had made contact with the coffee company's corporate security team to address the issue and gain greater clarity.

Mr Luna said he had spoke to Mr Longoria and asserted that he would not accept disrespect being shown to his officers.

Starbucks' policy of writing personalised notes and doodles on its cups was reintroduced last year by CEO Brian Niccol - but a number of controversial incidents have unfolded since the practice came back.

Shortly after the assassination of Charlie Kirk in September, a Starbucks employee came under fire for refusing to write his name on the cup when requested to do so by a patron.

A viral video of the incident showed the barista claiming she was unable to write "political names", with the customer walking away once her request was denied.

Starbucks later released a statement clarifying the incident, which confirmed that there are "no restrictions on customers using Charlie Kirk’s name on their order".

The coffee company added: "Having a name, rather than a number, attached to a customer order has been a core part of the Starbucks coffeehouse experience for decades.

"Most customers use their own name. And when a customer wants to use a different name - including the name Charlie Kirk - when ordering their drink in our café, we aim to respect their preference."

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