CENTRAL VALLEY, California – Delano and Merced police officers, accompanied by state agents, surprised businesses that sold alcohol to minors in the act.
This is the result of the Minor Decoy operation, where young people under the age of 20 were used as bait to discover infringing stores and supermarkets.
Over the weekend, Delano police and agents from the California Department of Alcohol Control (ABC) cited four businesses out of a total of 23 prosecuted for selling alcohol to people under 21 years of age.
These were: County Line Market, 1410 County Line Road; Chevron, 906 Fremont Street; Lucky 7, 2340 High Street; and Delano Liquor, 2240 Girard Street.
Each of them risks a $250 fine in addition to having to do community work for at least 24 hours. They could review the alcohol license or even suspend it.
“Statistics show that the young population under the age of 21 shows a higher rate of drunk driving compared to the adult population,” authorities said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Merced police also cited two supermarkets for the same offense in the midst of a recent investigation. Nuevo Vallarta Market and the FoodMaxx store were fined for selling alcohol to minors.
