Serve, protect and deliver?
A homeowner in Tea, South Dakota was more than a little surprised after opening her door for an anticipated food delivery and finding a police officer instead.
“But your driver got arrested for stuff he didn’t take care of, so I figured I’d complete the Door Dash for you,” he continues, handing off the food to the woman, whose surprise has by now turned to outright laughter.
“Take care,” the polite police officer says as walks back to his cruiser.
“Thank you so much,” responds the still-laughing woman.
A Facebook post by Tea Storm Chasers notes the driver was arrested. According to New York Post, the non-profit group that describes itself as a media outlet monitoring police scanner calls and chases storms uploaded the video.
In the 27-second video clip, the officer doesn’t specify the subject of the warrant, but Tea Storm Chasers notes the arrest followed a stop for traffic violations.
Around the world, however, there have been incidents involving actual or disguised food delivery workers bringing customers a little something extra, including cannabis.
Last November in the U.K., an 18-year-old carrying an insulated Deliveroo bag was stopped by police to check if he had insurance to cover food deliveries. But beyond a McDonald’s Happy Meal, officers were surprised to also find cannabis.
Recreational cannabis is illegal throughout the U.K. Adult-use cannabis is also against the law in South Dakota, with the state Supreme Court upholding a lower-court ruling that nullified a voter-passed amendment to the state constitution, according to The Associated Press.
During the U.S. elections in November 2020, voters in four states that had recreational weed questions on the ballot gave their respective legislatures the green light to move forward with reforms, including all-out legalization. One of those states was South Dakota.
“I asked for contactless delivery!!” exclaimed one commenter.
“Shout, Put the food on the ground now! Hands where I can see them!” added another.
Some commenters opted for some helpful advice should homeowners ever find themselves in similar positions.
“These drivers need to get them some kinda insulated box or something,” suggested one poster.
There were also those who couldn’t believe the officer took the time and effort to complete the delivery.
“Bro this cop just went WAY out of his way to make sure you got your food. He didn’t have to do that, and nobody asked him to. He just wanted to be kind,” noted one. Another person added:
“Every single person I encountered in SD was suspiciously nice. Even the cops.”
As for the most confusing, yet somehow the best, comment? “I Roll Joints for Gnomes.”
“While delivering food is not a normal part of police work, helping people is,” an SFPD spokesperson told Newsweek.
“Sioux Falls police officers regularly go above and beyond the normal job and this is just one example of that. Little things like this happen on a regular basis and while most don’t receive the attention, we realize those little things can make a big difference.”
Citing a DoorDash spokesperson, Newsweek further reports the company is “actively looking into this to take all appropriate actions.”