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(CNN) – A man in British Columbia, Canada, is starting the new year with hundreds of dollars in fines after police said he touched the taxi driver’s face and refused to wear a mask inside the car.
On New Years Day, around 1 a.m., the taxi driver in Victoria called 911 to report that a passenger was “belligerently rejecting the driver’s requests for the passenger to adhere to” the Covid-Related Measures Act guidelines. -19 (CRMA) of the province, according to the Victoria Police Department.
When using a taxi or other transportation service, those guidelines advise “as much as possible, avoid physical contact with passengers,” maintain social distance and cover your face. Violators of any of these rules are subject to a fine of $ 175 ($ 230 CAD).
The man was not identified by authorities and it is unclear if he is a Canadian resident.
After calling 911, the taxi driver took the man to police headquarters, where he refused to comply with officers’ demands to leave the car, authorities said. The officers took him out of the taxi and detained him.
The man was fined on three accounts for failing to wear a face covering, abusive or belligerent behavior, and failing to comply with an officer’s instructions, for a total of $ 542 ($ 690 CAD), the most CRMA fines ever issued to a individual by VicPD officers, police said.
The passenger also received a fine for being intoxicated in a public place and was held at the headquarters behind bars until he was sober.
As of Monday, Canada has recorded 610,740 Covid-19 cases and 15,944 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
This story was first published on CNN.com, “A drunk taxi passenger refused to wear a face mask, so his driver took him to the police station”
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