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Crime & Safety

Six Arrested in Sammamish Plateau Sting Aimed at Curbing Sale of Alcohol to Minors

Sammamish Police make arrests after several local businesses sell alcohol to a 19-year-old.

Sammamish police made six arrests Aug. 15 following a sting operation in which a 19-year-old Washington State Liquor Control Board employee purchased alcohol at nine businesses either in the city or on the Plateau, authorities said Tuesday.

The businesses involved, police said, were Ristorante Simone on Northeast 8th Street, Sammamish 76 gas station on 228th Avenue Northeast, the Pine Lake Ale House on 228th Avenue Northeast, the Mongolian Grill on Northeast 8th Street, August Moon on 228th Avenue Southeast, the Rite Aid on Issaquah-Pine Lake Road Southeast, Lanponi Thai on Inglewood Hill Road, Chan's Place on Klahanie Drive Southeast and Thai Ginger on Klahanie Drive Southeast.

At each of these businesses the 19-year-old state liquor control board employee presented his actual driver's license, which showed his birth year of 1992, and was able to buy alcohol or was served an alcoholic beverage, Sammamish police reported.

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On Tuesday afternoon, Sammamish Patch contacted all the businesses named by Sammamish police to seek a comment. Sammamish Patch left messages with employees if an owner or manager was not available.

Pine Lake Ale House owner Kevin Gattke explained that his employee who made the mistake feels horrible about it. "It's the first time it's happened in the 11 years we've been open. It's obviously an unfortunate incident," he said. "We do our best to really check IDs. It's an opportunity for us to sharpen up."

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At Rite Aid, the sale of alcohol and tobacco is taken seriously, company spokeswoman Ashley Flower said Wednesday. "We do have policies and procedures surrounding those sales. All associates are trained on them," she said.

"We have retrained our store associates on the procedures surrounding the sale of alcohol. We do believe that this was an isolated incident. Certainly, we are taking every effort to prevent any further occurrences."

The sting operation came as a result of the  hearing from people that alcohol was readily available to the city's youth.

"We'd gotten reports from a number of kids in the city that liquor was easy to get," Sammamish Police Sgt. Jessica Sullivan said.

Since the end of the school year, King County Sheriff deputies working for Sammamish police contacted or arrested 12 young people for Minor in Possession of alcohol. They also arrested five others for driving under the influence.

In May, deputies stopped a 19-year-old Sammamish man, who said he was a Washington State University football player, for driving under the influence. He registered a .182 and .168 on two Breathalyzer tests and voiced concern about losing his spot on the football team.

Sullivan encourages parents to talk with their children about the issue and dangers of underage drinking. "We certainly want to get the message out to the community," she said.

State liquor control agents will be working with the businesses to improve their employee training and compliance in regards to the sale of alcohol to minors, according to a Sammamish police statement. Further violations by these businesses could result in the loss of their liquor licenses.

A person who serves alcohol to a minor or sells to an underage person could face a criminal citation, Brian Smith, a state liquor control board spokesman said. Businesses could face a $500 fine, which is typical for a first offense, he added.

But people who are cited or a business that receives a fine can appeal them.

At state liquor stores, he added, the "no sales to minor" compliance is at about 95 percent each year. At a private business, such as a convenience or grocery store, the "no sales to minor" compliance for beer and wine can be as low as 76 percent and reach into the low 80 percent range.

Editor's note: This story was updated on Wednesday, Aug. 24 to include a statement from Rite Aid. Sammamish Patch will update this story if owners or managers of the businesses named by Sammamish police have a comment or issue a statement. At one restaurant, the woman who answered the phone said she was too busy to take a message for the owner. Sammamish Patch Editor Brad Wong can be reached at 425-440-1796 or brad.wong@patch.com.

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