Illegal Speakeasy Busted By NYPD During Coronavirus Crackdown

Twitter / NYC Newschannel

With more than 75,000 cases of confirmed COVID-19 in New York alone, the state has imposed one of the strictest bans on gatherings in the entire country.

Due to the global Novel Coronavirus pandemic, much of the United States is on a general lockdown or “stay home” order – and that includes New York City which has become the worldwide epicenter for the viral outbreak.

According to NBC 4 New York, one bar owner didn’t think that the rules applied to him and instead turned his bar into an illegal speakeasy which defied the governor’s mandate for all bars to close.

The bar, called Miami II Sport Cafe, was located on Kings Highway in Brooklyn and is operated by 56-year-old Vasil Pando.

Authorities were alerted that Pando was running a speakeasy after a call was placed that tipped them off. As it turns out, not only was Pando serving his guests booze outside of regulation – but he was also violating social distancing mandates by having 12 people inside his bar and allowing them to gamble.

Cops showed up and arrested Pando on Saturday (March 28th, 2020) just after 11 p.m. and charged him with the illegal sale of alcohol, promoting gambling, and violating the social distancing order.

NYPD officers performed a sweep of the city’s bars and found that 5,867 out of 7,667 were closed. No information is available about what occurred with the locations discovered to be open.

Currently, anyone violating the city’s social distancing order can be cited and fined up to $500.

Watch the video below on the state of the COVID-19 outbreak in New York City and hear from Dr. Jeffrey VanWingen about how to properly clean and disinfect your groceries to reduce the risk of contracting the virus after shopping.