A man in Wales has been charged by police after he was filmed ripping plastic coverings off ‘non-essential’ items at a Tesco supermarket. You can watch the video here:
In the footage posted on Facebook, Gwilym Owen, from Anglesey, can be seen tearing plastic sheets off items in the clothing section of the Tesco Metro in Bangor on Friday evening.
Speaking to North Wales Live, he said he felt compelled to do ‘what [he] could to stop it’.
By ‘it’, he is referring to the ban on selling products such as clothes, shoes, toys and bedding during the country’s 17-day ‘firebreak lockdown’.
Owen now faces numerous charges.
In a statement, North Wales Police said: “Following an incident at Tesco in Bangor on the evening of Friday 23 October, 28-year-old Gwilym Owen from Anglesey has been charged with Criminal Damage, several Public Order offences, and Contravention of the Coronavirus Regulations.
“He has been granted conditional bail to appear at Caernarfon Magistrates court on 24 November.”
The Welsh government previously said the ban on selling non-essential items was ‘not for the sake of being difficult’.
It said: “The purpose of selling essential items only during fire-break is to discourage spending more time than necessary in shops and to be fair to retailers who have to close.
“This is not for the sake of being difficult – we need to do everything we can to minimise the time we spend outside our homes. This will help save lives and protect the NHS.”
However, more than 55,000 people have now signed a petition calling for supermarkets to be allowed to sell non-essential items during the lockdown.
First Minister Mark Drakeford said the government would be reviewing the measures.
He said: “We’ll be reviewing how the weekend has gone with the supermarkets and making sure that common sense is applied.
“Supermarkets can sell anything that can be sold in any other type of shop that isn’t required to close. In the meantime, please only leave home if you need to.”
