Armed Maine Residents Try to Forcibly Quarantine Out-of-Towners By Blocking Their Road With a Tree

An armed group of Maine residents have attempted to forcibly quarantine a group of out-of-towners that they suspected may have the coronavirus.

The trio had been in Maine for a month and reportedly show no symptoms of the coronavirus. 

In a Facebook post, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office reported that on Friday afternoon a resident of Vinalhaven went down his street to try and figure out why their cable wasn’t working. When he got there, he found a tree blocking the end of his road.

“While investigating the downed tree, a neighbor started yelling at him and a group of people showed up and began to gather around. Believing the group may be there to harm him, fled to his residence and told his roommates what he had found. The trio decided to stay put in the residence, utilized a VHF radio to hail the Coast Guard for assistance, they had no other means of communication, and utilized their drone to keep an eye on the group until law enforcement could arrive to help them,” the sheriff’s office post continued.

Though law enforcement did not find the group of people, they found a tree that they said was clearly cut down and dragged into the road.

“Deputies have learned that there is a general belief by some island residents that the Cripple Creek Residents are supposed to be quarantined because they came here from another state and could have Covid-19. Deputies did investigate this and learned that the trio had been residing on Vinalhaven for about 30 days, which is outside of the guidance issued by state officials, and none have any symptoms consistent with Covid-19,” the press release continued.

The sheriff’s office reminded residents that “whether someone is a Maine resident or not, they have the right to free movement and anyone who infringes upon that free movement is potentially violating the law.” Instead, they urged people to contact them if they suspect someone may be carrying the virus.

“We want everyone to be informed about Covid-19 and the rules around it,” the office said. “We also want everyone to be safe and not overreact in this time of uncertainty as it could end poorly.”