Police: Five Locations Cited for Selling Alcohol to a Minor.

Canton Police Department Press Release 

On Friday April 20, 2012, as part of the existing and future strategies to combat the underage drinking issue, Canton Police and the State Liquor Control Unit conducted a joint ‘Compliance Check Operation’ of all Canton bars, restaurants, package stores, and grocery stores that sell alcohol.

The alcohol compliance operation is designed to identify the licensed or permitted locations that are selling alcoholic beverages to minors. Canton Police Department officers, State Liquor Control agents and youth volunteers participated in the operation by visiting all of the above referenced establishments to determine whether any of them acted in violation of the law and sell alcohol to a minor.

The operation ran from approximately 5:30 p.m. until 10:30 p.m. and the joint teams checked 19 establishments in Canton to determine whether they were in compliance. Of the nineteen establishments checked, five were cited for selling alcohol to a minor. 

On Tuesday, police said at the following locations allegedly sold to minors during the check.

• Feng Asian Bistro, 110 Albany Turnpike
• Fireplace Café, 11 River Street
• Joe Pizza, 140 Albany Turnpike
• Rice Fields Restaurant, 460 Albany Turnpike
• Shop Rite of Canton, 110 Albany Turnpike

The Canton Police Department will continue with such programs as part of its mission to address underage use of alcohol and drugs, according to a submitted release. 

ShopRite statement 

On Tuesday, April 25, ShopRite owner Chuck Joseph released the following statement on the issue: 

We've worked hard to be active participants in responding to the needs of our town, and we are sorry that this has happened. We train our associates carefully to ensure that they follow the proper requirements for the sale of beer, and we are disappointed that in this case, the appropriate procedures were not followed. We've taken steps with our entire team to ensure something like this does not reoccur.