NYC deli to sell new ‘hero’ sandwich to raise funds for family of slain Officer Jonathan Diller

Metro

By Carl Campanile and Jorge Fitz-Gibbon

You can call this a real hero sandwich.

A landmark Queens deli is raising funds for the family of slain NYPD cop Jonathan Diller by peddling “The NYPD” sandwich in the fallen hero’s honor.

Mario’s Meat Market and Gourmet Deli in Middle Village said each sale of the hoagie — chicken cutlet, prosciutto, mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes and arugula drizzled with balsamic glaze — will mean a $5 donation for widow Stephanie Diller and the couple’s 1-year-old son, Ryan.

“Officer Diller’s murder gave me the chills,” deli owner Joe DiGangi told The Post on Sunday. “It hit me. I have two young boys. I couldn’t imagine not being at their hockey game.”

The deli is set to announce the sandwich Monday at 10 a.m. at its location at 75-55 Metropolitan Ave., with city Councilman Robert Holden and DiGangi holding a press conference.

“I was at Officer Diller’s funeral. I was in tears,” Holden (D-Queens) said Sunday. “Joe DiGangi is doing a good thing. He cares about the neighborhood. He appreciates the cops and the sacrifices families make.

“People want to do something to help the family. That’s the kind of district I have. We support the police,” the pol said.

Diller, 31, was on patrol in Far Rockaway shortly before 6 p.m. on March 25 when he approached a suspicious-looking vehicle illegally parked at a bus stop.

Police said the Kia Soul’s passenger eventually opened fire on the three-year department veteran and hit him in the stomach, just beneath his bullet-proof vest, mortally wounding him.

The alleged gunman, ex-con Guy Rivera, 34, was wounded and arrested at the scene after a life-and-death struggle for the murder weapon with a police sergeant.

Rivera was arraigned Thursday and charged with murder of a police officer, attempted murder and gun possession and is being held without bail at Rikers Island.

The driver of the vehicle, Lindy Jones, 41, was charged with felony gun possession and is also held without bail.

Diller, who leaves behind his wife and baby son, was laid to rest Saturday after funeral services in Massapequa — which followed a two-day wake attended by hundreds of uniformed officers and former President Donald Trump.

Diller was posthumously promoted to the rank of detective.

The community has rallied behind the young cop’s family since his senseless death, raising more than $2 million for his widow through the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation and other contributors.

Digangi will do his part by donating a chunk of the proceeds from the $16 NYPD sandwich to the family.

With the deli’s 250,000 followers on social media, the move should turn out to be a hefty contribution.

“Every little bit helps,” the deli owner said. “We can’t bring Officer Diller, back but at least we can give his wife a little peace of mind.”

Mario DiGangi, Joe’s dad, opened the shop in 1982 after migrating to the US from his native town of Polizzi Generosa near Parlermo, Italy, in 1971.

The deli has been selling homemade sausage and meat butchered inside its doors every since and once dubbed itself “King of Italian Style Veal Cutlets and Homemade Sausage.”

Mario DiGangi died in 2011, but his son has kept the business — and his memory — alive.