Over 100 People Caught Without Masks At Mennonite Church Service In Ontario

On the first day of Ontario's total shutdown.

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Police in Chatham-Kent say that charges have been laid following a maskless and illegal church gathering in Ontario over the Christmas holidays.

At around 11 a.m. on December 26, police responded to a report about a large event at Old Colony Mennonite Church in Wheatley, Ontario.

Upon police arrival, officers observed over 100 unmasked people inside the church. Chatham-Kent Police

Under Ontario's shutdown orders, only 10 people are allowed indoors for a religious service and masks must be worn.

A 50-year-old man who claimed responsibility for the event was charged under the Reopening Ontario Act, police say.

"Everyone complied with the officers’ requests to end the church service early and leave the property."

Police in Aylmer broke up an illegal church service over the holidays at the Aylmer Church of God and laid charges.

That church has defied provincial measures several times to host gatherings over the course of the pandemic.

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