At approximately 4 pm on December 14, store manager of Strathmore Value Drug Mart, Stacie Morck, was allegedly assaulted after advising a man about their mask policy.
She explained that she noticed the man not wearing a mask, and politely asked him to put one on.
“I sensed something when I approached the gentleman. He definitely was very irate. I don't think it had anything to do with what anybody had done in the store, I think he just came in like that, but he's been in several times. Everybody knows the mask policy. It is something that has been implemented everywhere in town.”
Morck then offered the man a mask and explained the store’s policy. Without the mask, he would be asked to leave the store, and an employee could grab the things he needed in the store.
“He was adamant that he would not wear a mask, he was adamant he was not leaving the building and he went into some sort of rant. Now at that point, with my mental health training, I decided that it was best I get on the phone with the police. I don't normally do that.”
She explained that her intuition was sensing this situation could put her and her staff in danger.
“As I was walking away from him, he muttered a bit of a threat and turned around and I thought to myself that I better move faster.”
While relaying information to the police, Morck could see the man getting more intense. The man was picking up a package at the post office, and the items were heavy. Morck asked the man to wait by the back door outside, ring the bell, and then she would bring the packages outside.
“I looked right at him and he decided to run into the post office area. He got ahold of me, manhandled me. At this point, I'm thinking, I just need to get this man away from our girls in the post office and get him out.”
“He would not leave. He was screaming all sorts of stuff and I tried to get him out the back door. I had three doors to go through and he was quite a bit bigger than me. He was trying to push me down the stairs, and they are very steep. Finally, I got him almost out once, and he slammed me up against a garbage bin, then a concrete pad, and then finally, he lifted me up and threw me face-first on the concrete outside.”
At this point, Morck’s husband and owner of the store, Gord, intervened and pulled the man off of her.
“When Gord came up, the man was still hitting me and just going wild.” Morck sustained various injuries to her face and body during this incident.
“But what I want everyone to take out of this is, it's not just the fact that he wasn't wearing a mask, the mental health state of this individual was not okay. I saw that sign, and I think he came in looking for a fight.”
She explained that she understands that there are people who do not want to wear a mask or comply. The store has done everything it possibly can to make everyone comfortable by offering curbside pickup or having employees grab the items needed while a customer waits outside.
“We try and protect everybody here, but I understand everyone is getting frustrated. It is taking a toll on everyone, but violence is never the answer.”
There have been lots of threats on social media where people want to protest wearing a mask. Morck wanted to advise other business owners to not take these threats lightly.
“You can’t come in and throw books, you can’t throw a fit. We are going to call the police, and that fine from the police is pretty hefty.”
The man in this incident has been fined a minimum of $2,400 and is facing 2 counts of assault.
“Any form of aggression is not going to be tolerated I mean, I have no ill feelings towards this man but it's not acceptable, especially when you're throwing me around like a rag doll. I don't know what's going on with somebody else's day but when it comes to enforcing these things at a family business. We will be calling the police.”
Morck explained that the officers who responded were fantastic while helping sort out the incident. She does hope that this incident will get more police on the street.
“We need the extra support in our businesses and if the government expects us to be putting these policies in place, they need to send in people to be policing more.”
Morck wants to send out a warning to other local businesses in the area. She hopes that they take any kind of aggression seriously and call the police no matter how small.
“I'm going to say this out to all the businesses, you need to be prepared. If someone is coming into your business or if they're on Facebook lobbying to go to businesses and come in all at the same time, you will have your hands full. You need to call the police.”
“If I wouldn't have called the police right away, I can’t tell you what might have happened. By the time I called the police and the incident happened, they were already on scene right when the guy fled.”
Employees at the store were able to identify the man by his name on the packages he was picking up and handed that information over to the police.
The police have suggested Morck hand out letters banning people from the property if they are coming in without a mask. The police will then enforce removing them and charging them.
“That is really not the way we really want to run our community, but I mean what's the alternative, getting assaulted? I mean, it's a tough question to ask, especially now because I honestly don’t know.”
Morck is currently healing from the altercation at home. She stresses that she is okay, but her and the employees at Strathmore Value Drug Mart are pretty shaken by the incident.
Strathmore RCMP Detachment Commander S/Sgt. Mark Wielgosz explained that this is a rare occurrence in the area, but it is being taken very seriously.
“There was a physical altercation that occurred on scene. The person who is a 52-year-old male was found by our members, arrested, and then taken into custody for assaulting the staff. The person was released to appear later on at a court date with conditions not to be back at the store, and have no contact with the patrons of the store. Charges are pending with respect to assaulting the staff and for violating the Public Health Act.”
Wielgosz continued to reiterate that those frustrated with the current restrictions should not be taking it out on local businesses.
“While some of these conditions may be frustrating, don't take it out on the staff. It's not their fault, they're just trying to do their best to comply with the restrictions that are in place.”
“By all means, bring forward your concerns to your elected officials, not businesses.”