A man accused of sending racist private messages to a Black Lives Matter Facebook page has lost his job with food giant Archer Daniels Midland.

Brad Schultz used a racial epithet in referring to the group and told them "get out of town with your [expletive] protesting," based on screenshots of the messages widely circulated over social media. Schultz's message added that they should "just leave, white people don't like you."

At least one Facebook group posted the messages publicly last week along with a number for ADM, where Schultz was employed. The post was shared more than 1,000 times. According to screenshots of Schultz's Facebook page, he lives in Mankato.

Archer Daniels Midland said in a statement Tuesday that it conducted an investigation into the employee's comments and that he no longer works for the company. They would not specify whether he resigned or was terminated. "These remarks are unacceptable and do not reflect ADM's values," the statement said.

Schultz did not return a call seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.

Screenshots show he later apologized to Black Lives Matter, seemingly after the comments had gone public. "It was cruel, and I didn't mean it," Schultz wrote in another private message. "In no way is my workplace affiliated with these comments. Please delete them."

"Internet justice is real," Minneapolis NAACP President Nekima Levy-Pounds posted on Facebook Tuesday afternoon. "Hopefully, individuals will learn from Brad Schultz's mistake and think twice before making racist statements on social media."

Eric Roper • 612-673-1732

Twitter: @StribRoper