Bigfoot hoaxers beat feet

ATLANTA, Aug. 19 (UPI) -- The alleged corpse of Bigfoot has been ruled a hoax and now the perpetrators appear to just as elusive as the mythical creature.

The Searching for Bigfoot Web site said the frozen form two Atlanta men had claimed last week was Sasquatch was really just a costume, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Tuesday. Now the men, former Clayton County police officer Matthew Whitton and car salesman Rick Dyer, aren't being quite so talkative, reported the newspaper, which said its calls to them weren't returned.

The Web site said the hoax was revealed when the block of ice containing the figure melted during the weekend and the pair later confessed it was only a costume.

Whitton, 28, had been on medical leave after being shot in the wrist by a robbery suspect this year, but was fired after his boss heard about the charade.

"He's disgraced himself, he's an embarrassment to the Clayton County Police Department, his credibility and integrity as an officer is gone, and I have no use for him," Chief Jeffrey Turner said. "His behavior is unbecoming of that of a police officer."