Dun Dun… Done? NYPD Special Victims Detective Gets Reassigned Over Viral Dance Clip

Written by: Sam Orlando

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - If you’ve ever watched Law & Order: SVU and thought, “Wow, the NYPD is full of serious, no-nonsense detectives,” you might want to sit down for this one.

Detective Melissa Mercado of the NYPD's Special Victims Division has been pulled from active cases after she was spotted not cracking down on crime—but rather, cracking out a full pole-dancing routine in a rap music video. That’s right, this is not an episode of SVU, and Detective Olivia Benson was definitely not in attendance.

According to reports, Mercado appeared in a music video featuring a nightclub scene where she twerked, pole-danced, and generally lived her best off-duty life. While it remains unclear if she broke any department policies, her superiors were quick to remove her from handling sensitive cases, presumably because lap-dancing and law enforcement don’t mix.

Colleagues have criticized Mercado, questioning whether someone working with victims of serious crimes should be starring in what could best be described as a “VH1 After Dark” production. Others argue that what officers do in their personal time should be their business—so long as it doesn’t involve sirens and dollar bills.

For now, Mercado remains employed but reassigned, as the NYPD continues its internal review. Whether she ends up back on active duty or in the running for Dancing With the Stars remains to be seen.

One thing is for sure—no one ever saw Detective Benson handling cases like this.