For the first time, Kawartha Lakes police have issued a charge under the federal Quarantine Act after a Lindsay resident failed to self-quarantine after returning from travel abroad.
On Tuesday (October 13), the Public Health Agency of Canada contacted the Kawartha Lakes Police Service to request officers complete a quarantine compliance check at a residence in Lindsay.
The agency informed police a Lindsay resident had been ordered to remain inside their home, in quarantine for 14 days, after recently returning to Canada from a foreign country.
When officers visited the resident’s home, they learned that the resident was away, visiting another community and not abiding by the quarantine order.
Officers returned to the person’s home the following day and issued the resident with a provincial offence notice for “Failure to comply with an order prohibiting or subjecting to any condition of entry into Canada”, contrary to section 58 of the Quarantine Act.
Upon conviction, the charge carries a fine of $1,130.
On Thursday (October 15), Ottawa police charged a 53-year-old woman under the Quarantine Act after she returned to work at a long-term care home four days after returning to Canada from a trip abroad. This was the first charge laid in Ottawa under the legislation.
