People around the world are snitching on ‘naughty’ businesses and rude neighbors who violate coronavirus lockdown orders
- Bikram Yoga West Loop in Chicago had to close after residents told police the studio was open for business
- A drag queen party at a bar in Tulsa was eventually shut down after attendees live-streamed the event on Facebook
- Tulsa police say they have received so many calls about order violations, they can’t respond to each complaint
- Police in Spain have arrested nearly 2,000 people and issued 230,00 citations to people violating quarantine orders
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All around the world, residents are snitching on businesses in violation of shelter in place orders that require non-essential businesses to close their doors to slow the spread of coronavirus.
Bikram Yoga West Loop studio in Chicago was closed down after neighbors tipped off police off to its opening. Studio teacher Naveed Abidi said he assumed it could stay open if he kept class sizesT small, sanitized the studio, and forced the studios so spread far enough from one another.
‘If we were naughty with the government’s order, then we’re very, very sorry’ Abidi told The Associated Press. ‘We’re not here to cause problems, we’re here to practice our poses.’
Bikram Yoga West Loop studio in Chicago closed down after neighbors called police to report it was still open to people practicing yoga
The studio could receive a fine of up to $10,00 for violating the order saying that only essential businesses could remain open
Neighbors in Spain snitch on residents who gather on the balconies, in open defiance of the quarantine orders in place
In Naugatuck, Connecticut, Gwen Becker was mad when she saw people crowded around a food truck and eating together as she drove by a golf course.
‘I was angry and upset, and I threw some f-bombs,’ said Becker, 54. ‘You’re not going to consider that what you’re doing could kill somebody?’
She shot video of the scene and published it on Facebook, which led to the town’s mayor closing the course.
Even in Spain, police have used videos and photos submitted online by neighbors or ‘balcony police’ to arrest close to 2,000 people and issue 230,000 citations for violating shelter-in-place orders.
In Tulsa, a bar owner served more than a dozen motorcyclists who showed up without warning.
Not too far away, a drag queen show that was live streamed on Facebook showed nearly 20 people drinking inside of a locked bar. When the police came knocking, they just kept drinking and didn’t answer the door.
Each bar eventually got misdemeanor citations and tickets to appear in court from police.
The problem is becoming so big in Tulsa, police can’t respond to all the callers who snitch on offending neighbors and businesses.
‘The fact that we have to do this at all means some people are not interested in self-preservation’ or protecting others,’ Tulsa Police Lt. Richard Meulenberg. ‘We’re not immunologists. We’re not scientists. We’re cops. We’re just trying to do our part.’
As of early Thursday, there were 932,605 confirmed cases of the coronavirus worldwide, with 46,809 deaths. The US has recorded 216,553 cases and 5,148 deaths.
