Police responded to a COVID-19 lockdown violation report in Nova Scotia, only to learn that the perpetrator was not who they thought.
Mike Cormier, the owner of the Ardmore Tea Room in Halifax, said that police visited his eatery on Thursday morning after someone reported a customer dining indoors at the facility, effectively violating the country's lockdown orders.
However, the alleged customer seated at the table turned out to be a mannequin.
"The officer got out and was looking in the window, and I saw her looking at the mannequin," Cormier said.
Cormier then left the restaurant to talk to the officer who confirmed that the caller had apparently mistaken the mannequin for a living person.
"Please don't call the police on us. We are only open for takeout and delivery. No eat in, she's a mannequin to help with social distancing," Cormier wrote on the restaurant's Instagram page.
Halifax Regional Police spokesman John MacLeod confirmed that officers were called to the restaurant Thursday morning due to reports of "individuals not following public health directives."
"Officers attended and found there were no issues or violations at that time," MacLeod explained.