Met Police officer blames ‘brain fart’ for stealing Pret tuna baguette
A Metropolitan Police officer who stole a £2.25 sandwich from Pret A Manger would have been fired had he not left the force, a misconduct panel has found.
Former Pc David Fyfe was caught on CCTV picking up a tuna baguette from a Pret in Wood Green shopping centre, north London, while on duty on April 9, 2025.
According to a written finding of misconduct, Mr. Fyfe spent “a period of time looking at the sandwich fridge.”
The officer then selected the baguette and “immediately left the store without attempting to pay for it.”
A Pret employee saw him leaving the store with the baguette in hand, then getting into the passenger seat of a police car and driving away.
The decision stated that the woman later reported the incident to another officer who came to the store to buy coffee.
Mr Fyfe was interviewed under caution on 1 May 2025.
He admitted buying a sandwich but denied stealing it.
He said his failure to pay was an “oversight” that he described as a “brain fart” due to lack of sleep and a recent argument.
A store manager said the item taken was a “thin tuna baguette costing £2.25” and Mr Fyfe said in an interview it was a cheese and pickle baguette costing £5, according to the ruling.
Following a hearing on February 13, a panel found that his conduct amounted to gross misconduct and would have justified his dismissal had he still been a member of the force.
In the decision, it was stated that the committee noted that “openly stealing by a uniformed officer is reprehensible behavior.”
