The NYPD is cop-blocking the boys in blue!
The department has launched an internal investigation into cops who post photos of themselves in uniform on dating sites — and violators could face termination, The Post has learned.
Dozens of officers are trying to “collar” a law-and-order-loving sweetheart on sites like OKCupid.com, match.com, pof.com, and meetsinglepoliceofficers.com.
But the crackdown has many cops pulling down their online profiles.
That includes a 29-year-old officer from Brooklyn who until yesterday had posted a photo of himself on OKCupid.com wearing a uniform and posing next to an NYPD motorcycle, while announcing, “I like girls who have some respect for themselves.”
Also deactivated yesterday: The looking-for-love profile of a 31-year-old officer from The Bronx, which included a photo of the Romeo in blue alongside the assurance, “I promise, I’m not a bad guy.”
The NYPD social-media policy — which has been taught at the Police Academy for three years — is designed to prevent officers from embarrassing the department while wearing its uniform, sources said.
The cops will be judged on a case-by-case basis, and some could be fired if they’re caught courting underage partners or abusing their authority, said a law-enforcement source.
Some officers said the NYPD should be more worried about the crackdown on stop-and-frisk and the layers of oversight imposed by a federal judge and the City Council.
Critics said it’s also a waste of investigative power that should be used finding “real” cyber outlaws, including pedophiles, scammers and identity thieves.
“The NYPD is obsessed with discipline and is inflexible in its views on the use of social media by police officers,” PBA President Patrick Lynch told The Post.
“Social media is here to stay. It’s a way of life and it’s time for the NYPD to adjust to that cultural change. The department and city would be much better served putting its investigatory resources into solving crime rather than looking into social-media pages of the men and women who risk their lives to protect this city.”
The NYPD said in a statement, “This directive is in compliance with the New York City Social Media Policy and is in part intended to protect officers from divulging identifying information on social- media sites that may endanger officer safety.”
Not everyone thinks the NYPD policy is a bad one.
“Personally, I think they’re a bunch of lowlifes using the uniform to get laid,” said one cop, who asked his name not be revealed.
“But I don’t think the NYPD should waste resources on this. The NYPD has bigger problems.”
An officer who posts uniformed “selfies” could be “using what the uniform represents” for unscrupulous ends, said a member of the department.
“Look at the ‘Cannibal Cop,’ ” he noted, referring to Gilberto Valle, who met his wife via OKCupid and was convicted for plotting to kidnap, torture and eat women.