Crime & Safety

William Street Store Cited After Selling Beer to Minor

Police say the store's clerk did not ask for identification from the 19-year-old before selling beer to him.

A case of beer found during a traffic stop led police to a local bodega, where they arrested a clerk Saturday evening for allegedly selling beer to an underage boy.

The 19-year-old was driving his Ford Explorer on Boston Post Road at 5:45 p.m. when an officer stopped him for traffic violations, Capt. John Telesca said. The officer looked into the SUV's rear cargo area and spotted an open cardboard case of beer, then checked the teen's license to verify his date of birth.

The teenager told the officer he had just purchased the beer with a debit card at RG Mini Mart at 235 William Street, and handed over the receipt as proof. The officer took the teen to the store, where he identified the 46-year-old clerk who sold him the beer.

The clerk was charged with sale of alcohol to a minor, an unclassified misdemeanor under the state's Alcohol and Beverage Control Law. The case will be referred to the state's liquor authority for a hearing. Police called the teen's parents and released him to their custody, sans beer.


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