New Brunswick RCMP say several people were arrested in an anti-coronavirus-measures rally outside of Moncton city hall on Sunday.
Around 25 protesters gathered in the city that remains under the red phase of New Brunswick’s COVID-19 recovery plan.
Some protesters held signs that read phrases including: “Church is essential,” “Unmask the truth,” and “Media is the virus.”
Const. Hans Ouellette with the New Brunswick RCMP told Global News several tickets were handed out to the protesters for offences under the Emergency Measures Act.
Six individuals were arrested.
One 47-year-old Moncton man who was arrested was released the same day.
The other five people are facing charges, Ouellette said, including three who were charged with failure to comply with orders under the Emergency Measures Act:
- 54-year-old David Robert West from Riverview
- 34-year-old Nicholas DeAngelis from Bathurst
- 31-year-old Britney Green from Bathurst
Two others were charged with resisting arrest, assaulting a peace officer and failing to comply with Emergency Measures Act order.
RCMP said 29-year-old Jonathan Rossiter of Nackawic, N.B., and 49-year-old Dawn Teakles from Moncton are facing these charges.
They are both scheduled for a court appearance on Feb. 22.
RCMP was not able to share how many tickets for COVID-19-related violations were given out.
In New Brunswick zones under the red alert level of COVID-19 recovery, masks are required in outdoor public spaces when physical distancing of two metres cannot be maintained. In addition, outdoor gatherings are restricted to five people or less with physical distancing.
As of Monday, the Moncton region, or Zone 1, had 94 active cases of COVID-19.