Celebrity chef Mario Batali will reportedly not face charges after being accused of sexual assault by two women.
The New York Police Department has closed the two investigations into Batali’s alleged misconduct, multiple outlets report.
The NYPD declined to comment on the specifics of any investigation but said in a statement that it “takes sex crimes and sexual assault very seriously, and encourages anyone with information about such a crime to report it to police, so perpetrators can be prosecuted, and justice can be secured for survivors.”
The department was not able to develop probable cause in either of the two Mario Batali cases it was investigating, according to CNN.
Allegations first surfaced against Batali in Dec. 2017, when four women said the chef “touched them inappropriately in a pattern of behavior that appears to span at least two decades.”
After those allegations, Batali was fired from ABC’s The Chew and apologized in his newsletter, writing that he “made many mistakes and I am so very sorry that I have disappointed my friends, my family, my fans and my team. My behavior was wrong and there are no excuses. I take full responsibility.”
Batali ended the newsletter with a recipe for pizza dough cinnamon rolls, which many criticized as tone-deaf.
He also stepped away from his restaurant empire, Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group, though he remains a financial partner, still profiting from those restaurants, Eater reported in Dec. 2018.
Mario Batali restaurants: OTTO briefly closed for health violations
OTTO Entoeca e Pizzeria/Facebook
One of the those restaurants, OTTO Enoteca Pizzeria, located on East 8th St. and 5th Ave. in Greenwich Village, recently faced some issues with the New York City Department of Health.
The health department closed down OTTO following an inspection on Jan. 3. The B&B Hospitality Group restaurant earned 38 violation points and was cited for sanitary issues like evidence of live roaches and mice, conditions conducive to attracting vermin and improperly installed or maintained plumbing.
OTTO was inspected again on Jan. 7, earning 10 violation points for sanitary issues including live roaches and not being vermin proof.
The restaurant recently posted on Instagram that it would be closed for maintenance and repairs but open soon. OTTO was officially authorized to reopen on Wednesday, Jan. 9, according to the city health department.
B&B Hospitality Group did not respond to a request for comment about either the conditions at OTTO or the closed investigations into chef Mario Batali.
