'Bigfoot' just a hoax. Surprised?

ATLANTA - Turns out Bigfoot was just a rubber suit.

Two researchers on a quest to prove the existence of Bigfoot say that the carcass encased in a block of ice - handed over to them for an undisclosed sum by two men who claimed to have found it - was slowly thawed out, and discovered to be a rubber gorilla outfit.

The revelation comes just days after a much ballyhooed news conference was held in California to proclaim that the remains of the legendary man-ape were found in the North Georgia mountains.

Matt Whitton, an officer who has been on medical leave from the Clayton County Police Department, and Rick Dyer, a former Georgia corrections officer, announced the find in early July on YouTube videos and a Web site.

"Everyone who has talked down to us is going to eat their words," Whitton said at the time.

Phone calls to Whitton and Dyer went unreturned yesterday. But the voice-mail recording for their Bigfoot Tip Line - which proclaims that they search for leprechauns and the Loch Ness monster - has been updated, announcing that they're also in search of "big cats and dinosaurs. If you see any of those, give us a call."

Yesterday, Clayton County Police Chief Jeff Turner said that he has not spoken to Whitton but has processed paperwork to fire him.

"Once he perpetrated a fraud, that goes into his credibility and integrity," Turner said. "He has violated the duty of a police officer." *