Shake Shack employees cleared after being accused of ‘intentionally’ poisoning NYPD
The police union accused employees of the burger chain of foul play after three officers in lower Manhattan fell ill.
Shake Shack employees accused of deliberately poisoning law enforcement with milkshakes have now been cleared by the New York Police Department after calls for an investigation.
The police union accused employees of the burger chain of foul play after three officers in lower Manhattan fell ill after drinking milkshakes from Shake Shack and were subsequently taken the hospital this past Monday.
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An NYPD officer (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Monday evening it was reported that the officers had been treated and were in stable condition, but immediately following the incident, the NYC Police Benevolent Association tweeted a statement claiming the officers had “discovered that a toxic substance, believed to be bleach, had been placed in their beverages.”
“When NYC police officers cannot even take meal without coming under attack, it is clear that environment in which we work has deteriorated to a critical level,” said PBA President Patrick Lynch in a since-deleted tweet. “We cannot afford to let our guard down for even a moment.”
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“Tonight, three of our fellow officers were intentionally poisoned by one or more workers at the Shake Shack at 200 Broadway in Manhattan,” the Detectives’ Endowment Association also wrote in a since-deleted tweet. “Fortunately, they were not seriously harmed. Please see the safety alert”
In response, Shake Shack put out their own statement saying they were “horrified” by the allegations and would be complying with a police investigation.
However, despite all the alarmist declarations, CBS reported that sources connected to the incident had determined that the milkshakes had been tainted not because of a targeted attack against law enforcement but simply because the cleaning solution was not fully removed from the machines after a previous washdown.
Following the investigation, NYPD Chief Detective Rodney Harrison confirmed that “there was no criminality by Shake Shack’s employees.”
Despite clearing the names of the staff, conservative pundits continue to share conspiracy theories on social media accusing Shake Shack of a milkshake attack against the NYPD.
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Our team is working hard to get the full picture. In the meantime, we’re relieved to hear the officers are all okay. https://t.co/rjJYFSYjZc
— SHAKE SHACK (@shakeshack) June 16, 2020
A lot of cancel culture going on lately but lemme guess, not gonna happen to @shakeshack after one of their employees poisoned NYPD officers, right?….
I’m guessing that was just a “social justice” episode, right?
Liberalism is a disease.
— Tomi Lahren (@TomiLahren) June 16, 2020
NYPD brass is saying the Shake Shack milkshake machine wasn’t rinsed properly after cleaning and that the three 42 pct cops weren’t intentionally targeted with the bleach cleaner.
If that’s true, why weren’t any other customers affected?
— John Cardillo (@johncardillo) June 16, 2020
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