A New Jersey gym that violated stay-at-home orders by reopening on Monday has now been forcibly closed by the state and county health dep...
A New Jersey gym that violated stay-at-home orders by reopening on Monday has now been forcibly closed by the state and county health departments.
The owners of Atilis Gym in Bellmawr arrived Thursday to find a notice of embargo from the Camden County Division of Environmental Health taped onto their front door.
In an Instagram video, the owners described the order as one of 'Governor Murphy's dirty tricks, playing with his power in the health department'.
'For right now, the gym will be closed,' the owners Ian Smith and Frank Trumbetti conceded in the clip.
However, they defiantly declared that they would 'file a suit against Gov. Murphy first thing this morning'.
On Monday, crowds of supporters gathered outside Atilis Gym as it reopened for the first time since mid-March.
Gym owners Ian Smith (left) and Frank Trumbetti (right) are pictured welcoming a customer to the gym Tuesday - one day after they reopened in defiance of New Jersey's stay-at-home order. The local health department has now shut down the facility
The gym spent two months shuttered amid the coronavirus crisis. After reopening for three days, it has now been shut down by the local health department
On Monday, crowds of supporters gathered outside Atilis Gym as it reopened for the first time since mid-March. The local health department has now ordered the facility closed
Co-owner Ian Smith came under fire when he was caught on camera using a megaphone which featured a white supremacist sticker at the event.
Members of the New Jersey European Heritage Association were also seen at the reopening, proudly unfurling one of their banners.
But on Thursday, Smith took took to Instagram insisting he was not a white nationalist.
'That megaphone was handed to me,' he stated.
'In no way do I ever or would I ever support any group linked to hate or racism of any kind. That is not my message nor has it ever been. Please take a look at my family, we are a multi-racial family.'
Co-owner Ian Smith came under fire when he was caught on camera using a megaphone which featured a white supremacist sticker during a rally outside the gym
The gym's reopening defied Governor Phil Murphy's order for non-essential businesses to stay shuttered to slow the spread of coronavirus.
On Tuesday, high-profile protests were held outside the gym after police issued summonses to the owners and arrested a gym-goer after the facility opened for the second day in a row.
The man was detained after getting into a verbal altercation with an officer when he left the gym, reported NBC.
A man exercises inside Atilis Gym on Monday after it reopened to the public
Owners tried to take precautions to keep their clients safe - but it did not appease the Camden County Division of Environmental Health
The facility's co-owners Ian Smith (left) and Frank Trumbetti (right) were issued summons by police officers ordering them to close Tuesday after they reopened Monday
The interior of the large gym is pictured on Monday
According to reports, he had refused to give police officers his name when he came out of the gym after working out.
Other fitness fans were also pictured having their details noted down by officers in the parking lot outside the facility.
Officers were jeered by supporters and gym-goers who had flocked to show their support for the business owners.
Supporters, some not wearing masks, waved American flags and banners with slogans reading 'Keep social distance. Wear a mask', 'Liberate New Jersey' and 'Respect law enforcement at all times. This is a peaceful gathering.'
A New Jersey fitness enthusiast was arrested Tuesday after he went to work out at a gym which opened in defiance of the state's stay-at-home order. He was reportedly arrested for a verbal altercation - not because he entered the facility
The owners introduced a series of safety measures ahead of its reopening, according to the gym's Facebook page.
These measures included limiting the capacity to 20 percent and allowing only members inside.
Gym-goers' temperatures were also being taken on entry, and anybody with a temperature above 100.4 degrees would be turned away, the Facebook post said.
However, the rules have not appeased local and state health departments, amid the coronavirus crisis.
As of Thursday evening, 149,000 people have tested positive to COVID-19 in New Jersey, and more than 10,000 have died.
A fitness fan is pictured having his details noted down by an officer in the parking lot outside the facili
A man is seen working out outside the Atilis Gym on Monday
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