COVID-19 fines issued to "belligerent" man who dine-and-dashed, threatened staff

Police in British Columbia issued a pair of COVID-19 fines earlier this week after a man allegedly violated restaurant restrictions and threatened staff.

The Victoria Police Department (Vic D) says that on Monday evening, a group of diners attempted to leave a local restaurant without paying. The incident occurred at a restaurant on the 500 blocks of Yates Street just after 7:30 pm.

Police say that they managed to find the group nearby and brought them back to the restaurant to have them settle the bill.

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When they returned to the restaurant, however, officers discovered that some members of the group hadn’t returned and that those “missing men had been belligerent and aggressive towards staff” when employees tried to enforce the establishment’s COVID-19 restrictions.

“Staff reported that a man in the group had threatened a staff member who asked the man to follow the COVID-19 restrictions,” says VicPD in a statement.

“As part of their investigation, officers viewed surveillance footage from inside the restaurant and observed one man clearly violating the restrictions and threatening staff.”

The dine-and-dasher was found shortly after at another restaurant.

The man was issued two tickets under the COVID-19 Related Measures Act (CRMA) for abusive and belligerent behaviour, as well as failing to comply with patron conditions, totalling $460.