‘I had no idea it would turn into this,’ says Halifax’s ‘dancing cop’
Posted Jul 31, 2018 06:08:52 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A Halifax Regional Police officer never dreamed his dance at Pizza Corner Saturday night would get so much attention.
The video (see below) of Cst. Jordan Sheppard dancing to Silento's “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” in the middle of a crowd at the popular post-bar hang out has over 500,000 views.
“I had no idea it would turn into this,” Sheppard told NEWS 95.7's The Rick Howe Show.
Sheppard was one of several officers working in the area for public safety reasons when one of his colleagues went into the Pizza Girls restaurant and asked staff to play the song.
“She knew I knew the moves to it and thought it would engage the crowd, pump them up and have some fun,” he said.
“I looked over at my supervisor. He gave me the nod and a wink and said, 'Okay kid, go do your thing.'”
Sheppard then whipped and nae naed as a crowd of bar-goers cheered and recorded the dance with their phones.
A second video shows him dancing to Drake's “In My Feelings.”
“Anytime we can engage in the community in a positive way, we're going to jump all over it.”
Halifax Regional Police spokesperson Cst John MacLeod said officers are encouraged to have positive interactions with the community.
“It's always good when officers can relate to the public as human beings as well as law enforcement officers, especially when we get into areas where we have large crowds like Pizza Corner,” explained MacLeod. “People are far more understanding when we're called to enforce the law when they realize we're just someone out there doing our job.”
Pizza Corner is known to be a problem spot as Haligonians gather to grab a slice of pepperoni or a donair on their way home from a night of drinking, but Sheppard confirms there were zero incidents Saturday night.
