Entered the mikveh without paying
Question
A few years ago, a person wanted to immerse in the city mikveh. To enter the mikveh, one has to go through a turnstile with rotating iron rods, but with a small effort it was possible to crawl in, as many good people did, figuring that the mikveh belongs to the city. But the person in charge of the mikveh is felt differently. One day he came to make his inspection and realized that this person had entered by crawling under the turnstile. So he took his pants and left. The man came out and was shocked, realizing he had no pants. He looked out outside the mikveh into the street and he saw that the pants had been thrown on the sidewalk not far from the mikveh. He asked a passerby to bring him the pants, as he was without pants, so he got the pants and went out dressed. The man was very pained by this embarrassing experience, so he decided that from that day on for several years he’ll go to the mikveh for free. Did he behave correctly? And what should he do now, in retrospect?
Answer
Dear …!
One can understand very well the hard feeling of this person. But as observant Jews, we must act according to the opinion of the Torah and not according to our feelings.
It is important to note that the person who entered did indeed do something illegal, by not paying an entrance fee, and the anger against him was justified. [You wrote that 'many good people' do so. You could say that 'many' do so, but you certainly can't say that they are 'good'...]
The punishment carried out by the person responsible for the mikveh is excessive, but the personality who insulted the person who entered the mikveh was not the municipality, which owns the mikveh, but the person appointed on its behalf. Therefore, withholding payment does not take revenge on the perpetrator, but on the municipality, and this is certainly an illegal act.
There is no doubt that from here on he must begin to pay for using the mikveh. But as for whether he has to pay for the times he's already entered, you need to ask a local rabbi who knows how things work for in your area.