Saskatoon-area rental mansion amassed total of 12 tickets for alleged pandemic breaches

The Saskatoon-area rental mansion that recently came in the cross hairs of local police has been the source of a total of 12 tickets for alleged public health breaches since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, police have confirmed. 

The most recent ticket was issued last Saturday, according to police — just two weeks after a previously-ticketed gathering at the mansion was flagged by health officials as a COVID-19 outbreak. 

Health officials now confirm that outbreak is linked to more than 10 cases of COVID-19. 

"I'm super disappointed," said Jon Daniels, the owner of 5 Cherry Lane, after reviewing his property's security camera footage from the more recent incident last Saturday. 

Daniels said there were 14 vehicles in the parking lot and more than 20 people inside the mansion. 

While Saskatchewan's public health restrictions have changed over time to reflect the province's shifting epidemiological situation, in the weeks leading to last Sunday no mixing of family bubbles was allowed and private indoor gatherings were limited to a total of five people. Now the cap is at 10 people. 

"I'm disappointed that despite straight up telling this tenant that the police will show up, both my contract and the health order were treated with complete disrespect," Daniels said. 

'All related to too many people at a function': police

5 Cherry Lane is a 12,000 square-foot-property that falls within the Corman Park rural municipality that surrounds Saskatoon. According to the mansion's current AirBNB profile page, no parties or events are allowed and the property is only available for people aged 30 and older to rent. 

Last week, the Corman Park Police Service announced it had ticketed two men, one from Ontario and one from Saskatoon, for allegedly organizing a large gathering at the mansion on May 13. Saskatchewan health officials flagged the event as a COVID-19 outbreak, with anyone who attended being asked to immediately self-isolate. 

"It was learned that several people were approaching patrons of the Midtown Plaza in Saskatoon and soliciting them to attend a gathering at the residence to speak to financial opportunities," the police service said of the alleged May 13 gathering. 

On Tuesday, John Garnet, the acting chief of Corman Park Police Service, confirmed a total of 12 tickets had been issued to people at 5 Cherry Lane on eight occasions since November 2020. Garnet said he had searched the police's system for tickets dating back to March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began in Saskatchewan. 

"They're all related to too many people at a function," Garnet said of the tickets. 

The first of those tickets was issued on Nov. 1, 2020. The most recent ticket was issued this past weekend, on May 29 — just over two weeks after the May 13 incident publicly reported by police. 

Daniels said the group involved in the May 13 incident had asked to extend their stay at the mansion after some had tested positive for COVID-19 and needed to self-isolate. That group left the mansion late last week, he said. 

Four tickets were issued between the May 13 incident and the May 29 incident, according to Garnet: two on May 16 and two on May 19.

The person ticketed on May 29 was a different tenant than those ticketed on May 13, Daniels and Garnet both confirmed. 

"I apologize to Corman Park police," Daniels said of last Saturday. "In this case I feel they did an excellent job."

"Hopefully there are no COVID cases resulting," he added. 

However, Daniels has questioned a ticket he received on April 22. 

Daniels said that when he asked an officer why he was checking on the house, "he said that someone turning into my driveway was suspicious activity."

"And when I called him on that, basically I felt it was made perfectly clear that anyone turning into my driveway is something that the police to need to look into," Daniels said. 

CBC News has reached out to Garnet for further comment.

Daniels said he is planning to host potentially up to eight people at his mansion this coming weekend. He said he might inform the police service ahead of time about how many guests he's expecting.