Montreal restaurant broken into twice as owner works to reopen
A Montreal man is in shock after his restaurant was broken into twice in a week.
Cosimo Di Perna has owned Riventino Restaurant in LaSalle for 20 years.
He said someone smashed his window and ran off with as many wine bottles as they could carry.
"Shocking," he said. "I felt violated."
Then on Friday morning, it happened again.
"Last night, at midnight, I get another phone call, another break in, another motion detector happened," said Di Perna. "So we came right away. Another broken window. That made me very upset."
The first smash-and-grab was caught on security cameras, and the owner said it will cost thousands of dollars to complete the repairs.
Di Perna is trying to pick up the pieces in time to open his dining room next week after being forced to close as part of Quebec's COVID-19 pandemic measures.
"I was like, no way, it cannot happen, not at this time," said Di Perna. "We’re just trying to get back to normal next week. It just didn’t feel right."
Even if police can find the culprit, Di Perna is not sure he wants police to charge them.
He just wants to operate his business.
"I just don’t want it to happen again," he said. "I want to come in here in the morning and just work. What are you going to press charges for? It’s probably just someone who’s desperate, you know. We’re in desperate times. Just, stop doing this. It’s costing me money."
Di Perna said he filed a police report and will open his dining room next week even with a broken window.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
After hearing thousands of last words, this hospital chaplain has advice for the living
Hospital chaplain J.S. Park opens up about death, grief and hearing thousands of last words, and shares his advice for the living.
WHO likely to issue wider alert on contaminated cough syrup
The World Health Organization is likely to issue a wider warning about contaminated Johnson and Johnson-made children's cough syrup found in Nigeria last week, it said in an email.
WATCH Video shows dramatic police takedown of carjacking suspects chased through parking lot north of Toronto
Police have released video footage of a dramatic takedown of a group of teens wanted in connection with an attempted carjacking in Markham earlier this month.
Canada, G7 urge 'all parties' to de-escalate in growing Mideast conflict
Canada called for 'all parties' to de-escalate rising tensions in the Mideast following an apparent Israeli drone attack against Iran overnight.
'It was all my savings': Ontario woman loses $15K to fake Walmart job scam
A woman who recently moved to Canada from India was searching for a job when she got caught in an online job scam and lost $15,000.
Families to receive Canada Child Benefit payment on Friday
More money will land in the pockets of some Canadian families on Friday for the latest Canada Child Benefit installment.
After COVID, WHO defines disease spread 'through air'
The World Health Organization and around 500 experts have agreed for the first time on what it means for a disease to spread through the air, in a bid to avoid the confusion early in the COVID-19 pandemic that some scientists have said cost lives.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.