Maryland restaurant stayed open to customers with dead body in bathroom

Patrons were dining inside a Maryland restaurant after a woman’s dead body was found in the bathroom, news outlets reported.

The body was found in the women’s restroom of Jasper’s Restaurant, an American fare establishment in Prince George’s County, on Oct. 12, Fox 5 reported.

First responders arrived on the scene in the evening and said the woman likely died from a heart attack, according to Fox 5.

The women’s bathroom was closed to customers, but the men’s room stayed open for all customers to use, according to a police report. But otherwise the restaurant continued to operate normally.

The body remained in the restaurant for hours, WUSA 9 reported.

In a statement on its website, the restaurant said that upon discovering the body, employees quickly alerted authorities and listened to their instructions.

“Last night one of our customers tragically passed away within our establishment,” the restaurant said in the statement. “On behalf of our ownership, management and staff we send the sincerest and most heartfelt support and condolences to the deceased’s family.”

The incident sparked a discussion on Twitter after a post criticizing the restaurant went viral.

“Let’s talk about how the establishment didn’t close the restaurant and let her body stay in the bathroom until closing..NEVER GOING THERE AGAIN,” one person said on Twitter.

The body was later removed through a side entrance, according to news outlets.

The Prince George’s County Police Department told WUSA 9 it was investigating the death.