AceShowbiz - Celebrity chef and restaurateur Mario Batali is the subject of a New York Police Department (NYPD) investigation into alleged sexual misconduct.

The disgraced cooking impresario, 57, admitted to "making mistakes" in a letter to fans in December 2017 after four women accused him of inappropriate behaviour in a story published on U.S. food blog Eater. At least seven more women have since made additional claims against him.

In an episode of U.S. network CBS' flagship news show "60 Minutes" which aired on Sunday, May 20 it was reported that New York detectives had launched an investigation into the superstar chef over criminal misconduct allegations. An NYPD source later confirmed to HuffPost that Batali is subject to a police probe.

The "60 Minutes" episode featured interviews with multiple women who either claim they were sexually assaulted by the star or witnessed suspicious behaviour. One woman, who remains anonymous, has accused him of drugging her and engaging in criminal sexual misconduct while she was unconscious following a 2005 encounter.

She claims that when she woke up on the third floor of his famed eatery The Spotted Pig she was surrounded by broken bottles and had scratches on her legs and semen on her skirt. Batali has denied these allegations through his lawyers.

The woman said that she confronted Batali at work the following day but that he refused to talk to her. After her shift she claims to have called a crisis hotline and undergone an examination in hospital. Although she spoke to a detective she felt unable to file an assault report.

After the publication of Eater's original story, Batali announced he was stepping back from his role as a co-host on U.S. TV show "The Chew" and from his position at his firm Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group. He was fired from by The Chew producers just days later - and the restaurant company is rumoured to be planning a name change in the wake of the scandal.