Another Temecula Sting: 2 Adults Busted For Furnishing Kids With Booze

TEMECULA, CA ? Last month, the Southwest Sheriff's Station warned it is clamping down on people who furnish alcohol to minors ? and it made good on its promise this week.

On Tuesday, station deputies held a sting in the city that resulted in two people being cited. The sheriff's department used underage decoys who tried to purchase alcohol from four local retailers. The decoys also attempted to get 14 adults at two different retail sites to buy booze for them.

A store clerk at a business in the 40000 block of Winchester Road was cited, as was an adult who fell for the ruse at a store in the 44000 block of Margarita Road.

?Businesses should always check IDs before selling alcohol,? said Joseph McCullough, director of the state's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. ?Preventing access to people not old enough to legally purchase alcohol improves safety on our roadways and in our communities.?

The person who sold to the decoy faces a minimum fine of $250, and/or 24 to 32 hours of community service for a first violation. The state's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control will also take administrative actions against the store owner's alcoholic beverage license, according to the sheriff's department.

The penalty for furnishing alcohol to a minor is a minimum of $1,000 fine and 24 hours of community service, the sheriff's department reported.

On Nov. 14, deputies from the Southwest Sheriff's Station held a similar sting that resulted in one store clerk being cited.

At the time, the law enforcement agency warned more stings would happen thanks, in part, to a $75,000 grant from the state's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to battle "alcohol-related harm in the community." The project focus area includes the city of Temecula and the unincorporated county areas of Winchester, French Valley and Murrieta.

Expect more stings in the upcoming months: The grant program runs through July 2024.