A person who was acting in a "very disrespectful" manner during Thursday's ceremony to mark the 80th anniversary D-Day in downtown Barrie was arrested and charged.
Around 9:30 a.m. on June 6, members of the community, veterans and military personnel had gathered around the cenotaph at Memorial Square for the parade and ceremony.
Police say an individual stopped directly in front of the cenotaph and, using chalk, drew a large circle and placed a message around it.
While police did not specifically spell out what the message was, communications co-ordinator Peter Leon described it as "self-serving."
"The individual then began to yell at people in the immediate area and, as a result, Barrie police, who were on scene assisting and preparing to participate in the upcoming ceremony, stepped in and arrested the 49-year-old for breach of peace," police stated in a news release Friday.
Police say officers removed the person from the area and they were transported to Barrie Police Headquarters for further investigation.
The area where the chalk message was drawn was immediately cleaned up by City of Barrie staff, according to police, and the parade and ceremony proceeded without delay.
"The actions of this person were viewed by many as being very disrespectful given what the day and pending ceremony represented," stated the police release.
As a result of the investigation and given that the mischief was done in relation to the structure or part thereof that primarily serves as a monument to honour persons who were killed or died as a consequence of war, police say the individual was charged with mischief relating to a war memorial and causing a disturbance by shouting.
They were held for a bail hearing and were later released to appear in Barrie court on June 10.
