Aylmer police charged a man for not self-isolating after returning from South America in what is believed to be Southwestern Ontario’s first charge laid under an emergency order imposed to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Aylmer police received a complaint Monday about an Aylmer man not obeying the federal order requiring Canadians returning from abroad to self-isolate for 14 days, prompting an officer warn him.

An officer saw the man delivering a countertop in the town about 30 kilometres southeast of London the next day, police Chief Zvonko Horvat said Wednesday.

A 42-year-old man, whose name wasn’t released, was charged under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act. A conviction under the emergency law carries a fine of up to $100,000 and up to one year in jail.

“The message to the public is that people need to understand and take this legislation seriously. Obviously we have a crisis . . . in our communities. By doing exactly what he was doing, he was putting others at risk and officers at risk,” Horvat said.

The man had returned from Ecuador, a small country that has one of the highest number of COVID-19 cases in Latin America. The virus has spread so rapidly in the country’s largest city that some families have been keeping the bodies of loved ones for days because of strict quarantine and curfew rules.

On March 25, the federal government ordered anyone coming to Canada from another country to self-isolate for 14 days. The order issued under the Quarantine Act prohibits going to work, going on walks or going grocery shopping.

Under provincial emergency orders, gatherings of more than five people are prohibited, non-essential businesses must be closed and public places ranging from playgrounds and dog parks to sport fields are no-go zones. The measures are intended to slow the spread of COVID-19, a respiratory illness that has killed more than 100 people in Canada and prompted pleas by political and health leaders for people to stay home.

St. Thomas police said Wednesday the owner of a gym on Wellington Road was warned after bylaw officers found customers in the facility Tuesday. The owner was contacted and closed the business, police said.

So far, London police have relied on working with partners, including city hall’s bylaw enforcement office, to dish out warnings rather than charges under the emergency act, a spokesperson said.

“Thus far, this approach has worked. However, if there is consistent and ongoing non-compliance with some of the provincial orders, then formal charges may become the best enforcement action,” Const. Sandasha Bough said in an email.

An OPP spokesperson said no charges have been laid under the emergency act in the OPP’s west region, an area encompassing Southwestern Ontario.

There have been a handful of cases where warnings were issued for rule-breaking individuals and businesses, including a case last month in Aylmer where police warned a worship group that had gathered.

Last week, London bylaw enforcement officers sent warning letters to two body rub parlours caught still operating in defiance of the rules.

The province announced this week that anyone charged under the emergency act must identify themselves if asked by a provincial officer – a designation that includes police, First Nations constables and municipal bylaw officers.

“It is essential that measures are in place to allow provincial offences officers to lawfully require an individual to disclose their correct name, date of birth and address in order to protect our communities,” Solicitor General Sylvia Jones said in a statement.

“By providing provincial offences officers with this temporary power to obtain identifying information under the (act), they will be able to enforce emergency orders during these extraordinary times.”

Failing to correctly identify oneself carries a $750 ticket, while obstructing an officer results in a $1,000 citation.

dcarruthers@postmedia.com