Burton Mail

No masking silliness of excuses to police

LACK OF COVERINGS IN SHOPS REVEALS SOME RATHER ODD REASONING

- By HELEN KREFT helen.kreft@reachplc.com

A MAN was reported to police after telling fellow shoppers they should not wear facemasks after bizarrely claiming coverings could shrink the size of his private parts, police have said.

Officers from Mercia police safer neighbourh­ood team were stunned when they heard the man’s strange reasoning for refusing to wear a mask in a South Derbyshire store.

A spokesman said: “Unbelievab­ly, another seasoned shopper was reported to have advised customers not to wear face-coverings because he felt it caused the shrinking of an unmentiona­ble body part.”

Officers have now listed recent incidents of people refusing to wear masks in shops, warning that the new Delta variant means it is more important than ever to keep yourself and shop workers safe, saying this man’s silly excuse was the worst

One such incident concerned a middle-aged man who stated that he did not want to wear a face mask because he believed his “intelligen­ce quotient”, meaning his IQ, would reduce. A spokesman for the police said: “Even though the astuteness measuring tool does not record a minus result, the male persisted with his argumentat­ive and belligeren­t manner, causing upset.”

In another incident, the spokesman said: “To the entitled female consumer of senior years, who pushed past an employee, but not before screeching she’d been vaccinated and therefore did not need to wear a face covering – please think about others who are yet to receive a vaccine. Your abrasive manner did not go unnoticed.”

Finally, police had to banned a group of constructi­on workers from a South Derbyshire village shop for refusing to wear face coverings, as well as flouting the one in, one out establishm­ent rule.

The spokesman added: “Sadly, it has been unsatisfyi­ng to note a minority of injudiciou­s persons – those who do not possess medical exemptions or sunflower lanyards – entering premises without face coverings, with some behaving in an anti-social manner, causing unnecessar­y alarm and distress to staff and other customers.

“As restrictio­ns relax further, please consider how well-refreshed, full-throttle antics can impact on other service providers and users.

“With the emergence of the Delta variant, our message remains clear. Please respect grocery and hospitalit­y workers – and if asked to wear a mask, unless you have an exemption, please put one on.

“If you don’t follow rules you may be asked by business owners to leave the premises.”

 ??  ?? Police have had to deal with a range of excuses as to why shoppers refused to wear a mask
Police have had to deal with a range of excuses as to why shoppers refused to wear a mask

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom