- Police officer John Chell had announced his side job on his LinkedIn page earlier this week.
- Items sold at the store include $20 ornaments, $42 sweaters and $20 coins.
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It has been revealed that NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell is selling police-branded merchandise to raise funds for office drinks and snacks.
Chell announced her side gig on her LinkedIn page last week, months after filing paperwork to create the pop shop, called ‘The Cop Pop-Up Shop.’
“The new coin and clothing design challenge for my office just came up,” he wrote, as first reported HellGateNew York.
‘Check out The Cop Pop-Up Shop…a 501(c)(3) organization.’
The five items sold at the store are emblazoned with their boss’ insignia and include $20 Christmas decorations, $42 sweaters and $20 ‘Patrol Chief Challenge Coins’.
NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell is selling police products to raise money for office supplies.
Challenge coins are limited edition tokens given to those who served in a particular unit or operation in the military or law enforcement.
“The sale of the items is related to the Patrol Chief’s office club, which was created and operates within the Department’s guidelines,” an NYPD spokesperson told Hell Gate NYC.
“Any profits made from the sale of the items go directly to the club and are used to fund office supplies such as water, coffee, snacks, etc. Office and district clubs are managed across the department in a similar manner.”
It’s unclear why the NYPD, which has an annual budget of more than $5 billion, needs to sell items to buy office supplies.
While the challenge coins are now sold out, the other four items are still available for purchase.
DailyMail.com has contacted the NYPD for comment on this story.
Chell found herself in hot water last week after misidentifying a judge in a controversial social media post that accused her of letting a “predator” loose on city streets.
In a post sent from her official city transit.
“She released a predator into the community, who may be on his next train or walking the streets of our city, looking for his next victim,” he continued.
The letter was shared by three high-ranking NYPD officials, garnering hundreds of thousands of views and several angry comments directed at the judge. A photograph of a New York judge with the same last name circulated on some posters.
Late Thursday, a spokesman for the state judicial system, Al Baker, said the department had gotten several facts wrong about the case.
“Recent social media posts by NYPD officials criticizing a recent bail decision not only indicated that the crime allegedly took place in the wrong county, but also named a judge who did not preside over the case “Baker said.
The NYPD has taken a more aggressive approach on social media in recent months, criticizing those perceived as soft on crime or unfairly critical of the department.
Before the court’s statement, NYPD chief spokesman Tarik Sheppard said he “fully supported” the decision to convict the judges, adding that the practice would continue in the future.
Steven Zeidman, director of the criminal defense clinic at CUNY School of Law, said the publication had crossed a line and put a judge in danger.