Toronto restaurant owner arrested for breaking COVID-19 restrictions

TORONTO — The owner of a small chain of barbecue restaurants has been arrested for breaking COVID-19 restrictions.

Police say Adam Skelly, the owner of Adamsons Barbecue, is facing several criminal charges after repeatedly breaking health regulations imposed by Toronto and Ontario.

Skelly was arrested at the Etobicoke location of his chain after what police called a “dynamic scene.”

Police say they had changed the locks of the restaurant early Thursday morning after Toronto’s chief medical officer of health said the establishment must be closed under several health and safety regulations.

As an act of good faith, police say they allowed Skelly into a back area of the restaurant Thursday afternoon but they say he broke through an interior wall to access the dining area and then damaged the city-installed locks.

Toronto in lockdown

Toronto and neighbouring Peel Region are in lockdown in an attempt to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus in the two hot spots.

A ban on indoor dining at restaurants is one of the rules under Ontario’s COVID-19 lockdown regulations.

Skelly posted on Instagram that he intended to reopen the restaurant Monday morning in direct opposition to the province’s public health restrictions.

Skelly again reopened on Tuesday and Wednesday, leading to the city’s medical officer of health to take possession of the property.