Ten magistrates fined in a clandestine restaurant in the midst of a pandemic: Femme Actuelle Le MAG

To fight against the coronavirus health crisis, the government ordered the closure of restaurants and bars as well as confinement at 6 p.m. Measures which are however not sufficient to contain the pandemic, because a third containment seems inevitable despite the efforts of the Executive. Since the start of the second confinement, Friday, October 30, 2020, the French have no longer been able to sit down in an establishment to eat: only take-out is allowed. But some depart from the rule as pointed out The Parisian in its edition of Sunday January 31, 2021: ten magistrates were indeed fined Friday January 29, 2021 during lunch at the L’Annex restaurant, located opposite the Paris Court of Appeal, on the Ile de la Cité. The police passed by chance in front of the establishment and spotted a dozen customers enjoying their meals on the closed terrace of 15 square meters.

At the time of the control, the magistrates would have tried to justify themselves: "You have to eat well", they would have launched at the agents before trying to destabilize them by asking them in which framework they were intervening. An unsuccessful attempt as they all left the scene with a fine of 135 euros. The restaurant may soon find itself in administrative closure for two weeks and also lose state aid.

A restaurant far from hidden

"It's a take-away that has degenerated. There are 150 police officers passing by every day, Préfet Lallement passing through the door next door, the manager would have liked someone to come and tell him that what he was doing was not right", explained a person close to the restaurant owner on a daily basis. "This is not an underground restaurant like you see all over the place. It wasn't hidden in a private back room. It's been like this for several weeks. There are just tables that allow people to have lunch standing on the terrace rather than curdling outside. It has become a real puzzle to know how to eat ", also confided a thirty-something from the district who admits to having eaten there recently.

Read also : Covid-19: restaurants closed until April, bars until June … the new government leads