Two Pennsylvania deputies were reassigned after they were photographed without masks inside a restaurant that defied the statewide ban on indoor dining.
The Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office said Monday that the photograph was taken Saturday at The Crack’d Egg in Pittsburgh.
“We were made aware of this situation late Sunday morning and immediately looked into the incident,” the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office said. “Based on our preliminary findings, the deputies were immediately taken off the road and reassigned.”
The sheriff’s office said the officers would be placed under quarantine for two weeks while an investigation is underway.
The incident came a few days after Gov. Tom Wolf, who revealed he tested positive last week, announced new statewide restrictions, including a ban on indoor dining, that went into effect on Saturday and will last until the beginning of next month.
The restrictions also limited indoor gatherings to no more than 10 people and outdoor gatherings to 50 people, and reduced indoor capacity to 50 percent for all businesses serving the public.
While indoor dining was banned, the state allowed restaurants to remain open for takeout and delivery.
It isn’t the first time The Crack’d Egg has come under fire.
In September, the owners of the restaurant sued the Allegheny County Health Department after the restaurant was forced to shut down for ignoring Covid-19 restrictions, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.
The restaurant filed for bankruptcy in October, while continuing its operations without following state orders, according to the newspaper.
The Crack’d Egg did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
The sheriff’s office said it has taken the “appropriate action” to address the incident.
“We don’t tolerate any deputy that violates a health order from the governor, the county executive, or any health agency,” the office said. “We have been proactive in issuing policy directives and reminders that we are tasked to enforce that deputies remain compliant with the COVID guidelines.”
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
