Blasted “Love Island” cop Sean Reifel can get his job back. However, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Mayor J. William Reynolds says he will have to do one thing. Reifel was previously slammed by the local politician after it was revealed he allegedly quit his job to film the latest season of the popular Peacock reality series. His stint in Fiji, however, came to a sad end after he was the first islander to be booted from the villa in a recent episode.
According to a new report from TMZ, Reynolds told the publication that the Bethlehem Police Department is open to rehiring Reifel after being the first islander to be axed from the “Love Island” villa. However, in order to get back to patrolling the streets, Reifel will have to reapply for the position.
The mayor told the news outlet that if Reifel reapplys for the open position, he’ll be required to go through the same process as everyone else. Essentially saying he was not guaranteed solely because of his history with the city or department.
Reifel was one of the original cast members to be featured on season 8 of “Love Island” when it premiered on June 2, 2026. “I’m not a model, not an actor, I’m a police officer actually,” he said on the series. “You could be having the worst day of your life, and I’ll just help you sift through that.”
Before Williams shared how Reifel could get his job back, he criticized the 29-year-old while speaking with the media, according to The Blast. During his statement, he said the Peacock TV personality left the city of Bethlehem, PA, in a tough spot to film the series.
“Our police department spent a lot of time training, and we paid thousands of taxpayer dollars to send him to the police academy. We are disappointed he left as we now have another vacancy in our department that is impossible to fill until next year,” Mayor Williams said.
And that’s not all. He added, “I never thought I’d see the day in America where reality show participation wins out over being a police officer.”
Users on Reddit torched the public figure, with one writing, “This is so unprofessional lol, why are they trying to tarnish his name? Ever heard of At Will employment? [They are] mad AF they didn’t get to fire him first.”
Reifel’s Family Reacts To The 29-Year-Old Father Of One Being The First To Get Sent Home
Reifel’s elimination episode aired on Sunday, June 7, and his family reacted to the saddening moment with an emotional post on social media.
Reifel’s sister, Brice Marie, said that although she was told by “Love Island” producers that her brother would be the first to be sent home, she still found the moment difficult to watch. Additionally, she shared that one of the reasons Reifel may not have found a meaningful connection was due to his age gap with the other women.
“So, it just made sense that he didn’t find a super close connection there in that way,” she said, according to Cosmo.
‘Love Island’ Sets New Ratings Record
The new season of “Love Island,” hosted by Ariana Madix, is reaching a wider audience, as the first three episodes of season 8 have become the “most-watched debut of an original season of television” in the streamer’s history, per Variety.
The first three episodes have reached a total of 824 million minutes watched—a 74% increase from the year before.
Put another way, season 8 has generated about 3.7 million views. Variety reports that the estimate is based on dividing the 824 million minutes watched by the 224 minutes of content released so far.
The Show’s First Live Vote Of The Season Caused Issues
The increase in viewers was apparent during last night’s first live vote of the season. According to PEOPLE, when viewers learned they could decide which Islanders the three new bombshells would couple up with, demand was so high that it crashed the app.
The official “Love Island” Instagram account shared an update, though, informing fans that they’d extended the vote until 3 PM ET on June 10, 2026.
New episodes of “Love Island” air every day except Wednesdays on Peacock.
