NYPD Determines Razor Blade In Cop’s Sandwich Was An Accident

Queens, NY – A New York Police Department investigation determined that the razor blade found in an officer’s cheesesteak sandwich last week was not put there intentionally.

The incident occurred at about 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 5 when the plainclothes, on-duty officer stopped at the Bon Appetit restaurant located on Beach Avenue in Rockaway Park, WABC reported.

NYPD Detective Sophia Mason told Blue Lives Matter that the officer bit into a cheesesteak he had purchased and “felt a hard metal object in his mouth.”

Det. Mason said the officer pulled out a razor blade that had been in the sandwich.

She said the officer was treated for an injury to his mouth at a local hospital and released.

The detective reiterated that the officer was working in plainclothes and was not uniform but said police aren’t sure whether restaurant employees were aware he was in law enforcement.

The officer, who is a member of NYPD’s Critical Response Command, was driving a marked police vehicle when he arrived at the restaurant, the New York Daily News reported.

Newly-installed New York Police Commissioner Dermot Shea posted a photo of the razor blade to his official Twitter.

“To repeat: The NYPD has ZERO tolerance for acts of violence against our police officers. A sandwich bought at a Queens deli on Thurs. contained a razor blade that cut the inside of a @NYPDCT cop’s mouth. He’ll be OK, but a full investigation into this abhorrent act is underway,” Commissioner Shea tweeted.

NYPD investigated and, through surveillance videos and DNA testing on the razor blade itself, they were able to determine that the incident had been an accident, the New York Post reported.

Police said the kitchen had been under construction and that somehow, the blade had fallen into food that was being prepared for the officer and another customer.

“After a thorough investigation by @NYPDDetectives its been determined that the razor incident was indeed an accident-thankfully our officer or another customer wasn’t seriously injured. Appropriate agencies have been notified for follow up to ensure this never happens again,” Commissioner Shea tweeted on Saturday afternoon.

The owner of the restaurant apologized profusely for the incident and said they’ve never had anything like this happen in the 10 years they’ve been open, WPVI reported.

“First, we would like to extend our deepest apologies to the officer involved in this unfortunate incident,” the owner said in a statement. “In our experience, the NYPD Officers of the 100th and 101st precincts have been an exemplary example of professionalism and service to not only our business but to our local community in the Rockaways, Queens, and New York City at large.”

“If given the opportunity, the management of Bon Appetit would like to personally apologize to the officer and the rest of the local law enforcement community,” the statement continued. “We take great pride in our food. Our mission is to leave our customers satisfied every time… For this reason, we are deeply concerned and disturbed by the incident that took place on December 5th.”