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
India's foreign minister reacts to murder charges, claims Canada welcomes criminals
India's Foreign Affairs Minister accused Canada of welcoming criminals from his country in response to the RCMP's recent arrests in a homicide that has roiled tensions between the two countries.
15-year-old boy stabbed in Ottawa on Thursday dies
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Dash cam catches moment suspected drunk driver hits parked car, sends it careening into North Shore flower shop
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
Actor Bernard Hill, of 'Titanic' and 'Lord of the Rings,' has died at 79
Actor Bernard Hill, who delivered a rousing cry before leading his people into battle in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' and went down with the ship as the captain in 'Titanic,' has died.
'A tiny city:' Pro-Palestinian campus protesters organize for another week
Pro-Palestinian activists have set up tents at universities in Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver and Montreal, following a wave of similar protests at campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Lawsuit against Meta asks if Facebook users have right to control their feeds using external tools
Do social media users have the right to control what they see — or don't see — on their feeds?
A Holocaust survivor will mark that history differently after the horrors of Oct. 7
This year's Holocaust Remembrance Day, which begins on Sunday evening in Israel, carries a heavier weight than usual for many Jews around the world.
Princess Anne lays wreath at Battle of Atlantic ceremony; honours late Queen
Princess Anne saluted Canadian veterans and current forces members and honoured her late mother during separate ceremonies Sunday in Victoria as she wrapped up a three-day British Columbia West Coast royal visit.
El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.