In today’s social media world, this was already a slippery slope for people who allegedly left a ski resort restaurant with an unpaid bill.
In 2024, not only is just about everything caught on camera, but social media allows everything to be played for the whole world to see. Just like that, an incident in a remote locale can become something seen by millions of people.
It happened here.
A viral video of an alleged dine-and-dash incident — with profanity and accusations of threats — in Collingwood has now resulted in a criminal charge against a man following a confrontation with a waiter at the Blue Mountain Resort.
“On Sept. 15, 2024, a dispute between a patron and a staff member took place outside a restaurant due to an unpaid bill,” alleged the OPP. “Footage was captured of the dispute and shared on social media, leading to the identification of those involved.”
This came to light after online coverage by TizzyEnt, who called for his followers to identify a couple
seen leaving a restaurant.
Now a 38-year-old man from Brampton has been charged.
Cops aren’t accusing him of not paying his bill.
“The investigation revealed that the unpaid bill was settled in full shortly after the incident,” said the OPP.
Sources say people returned to the restaurant, paid the $350 bill, and offered an apology. But what happened outside of the restaurant after the dinner, caught on video cameras, is a separate matter.
Police say a man has been charged with “assault, uttering threats to cause bodily harm” and will “appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Owen Sound on Oct. 24, 2024.” The OPP say they have decided to take the unusual decision not to release his name – citing concern about how revealing the man’s identity would affect three children who were at the table.
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These charges have not been tested in court.
At the time, waiter Robbie Martin said there were three adults and three children in for dinner, and that entrees and drinks were served. The confrontation that ensued in front of the restaurant is now the focus of the case — and not what went on earlier inside in Magnone’s Italian Kitchen, one of the two dozen top eateries in the village.
“I can confirm that the incident was reported to the Collingwood and The Blue Mountains OPP and is being investigated,” OPP Const. Martin Hachey said at the time.
Now that investigation is complete, and charges will be taken to the courts.
“Members of the Collingwood and The Blue Mountains OPP are committed to public safety, delivering proactive and innovative policing in partnership with our communities.”
This was some good police work by the OPP – with some help from a famous American social media star who brought it to the world.