An employee at a Chicago Dunkin’ location was arrested Friday, one day after an Illinois state trooper discovered saliva inside a cup of coffee, state police said.
Vincent Sessler, 25, was charged with disorderly conduct, reckless conduct and battery to a peace officer.
At approximately 10:20 p.m. on July 30, an Illinois State Police trooper ordered a large black coffee from the Dunkin’ location at 6738 W. Archer Ave. on the city’s Far West Side.
Because the coffee was extremely hot, the trooper removed the lid from the cup in order to cool it down, according to a news release from ISP. At that point, the trooper observed a “large, thick piece of mucus,” which was later confirmed to be saliva, floating inside.
Following an investigation, Sessler was arrested at 12:49 p.m. on Friday, and taken into custody without incident.
“This is outrageous and disgusting. The men and women of the Illinois State Police put their heart and soul into protecting the lives and rights of all people in this state every day,” ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly stated in the news release. “They deserve better than this insulting and dangerous treatment. For their safety, ISP officers and employees will be prohibited from patronizing this location.”
Sessler remained in police custody as of Saturday evening.
Dunkin’ released the following statement to NBC 5 regarding the incident:
We are aware of the matter that took place at the Dunkin’ restaurant located at 6738 W. Archer, Chicago, IL. Dunkin’ and all of our franchisees share the goal of creating a welcoming environment in all Dunkin’ restaurants and treating all guests with dignity and respect. The type of behavior reported to us is inconsistent with the brand’s values. The franchise owner who independently owns and operates this restaurant, informs us that he took immediate action to investigate the matter and terminated the individual responsible for this reprehensible behavior. Dunkin’ has a deep appreciation for police officers who work tirelessly to keep our communities safe, and the franchise owner has reached out directly to the officer to apologize for the experience.