Police Sting Nabs 18 Clerks Selling Tobacco to Minors

Eighteen citations were issued for selling tobacco products to a minor during a sting operation Saturday in San Mateo County, sheriff’s deputies said Wednesday.

During the weekend’s one-day operation, 144 merchants across the county were checked to see whether they would furnish tobacco products or paraphernalia to underage customers acting as police decoys.

The operation featured a coalition of personnel from the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, Redwood City Police Department, Menlo Park Police Department and East Palo Alto Police Department. It was part of Stop Tobacco Access to Kids Enforcement, a program created in San Mateo County.

Many of the suspected offenders in Saturday’s sting came from Redwood City and the north Fair Oaks area, where seven and six clerks, respectively, sold tobacco to a minor decoy.

Those clerks, along with three from Menlo Park and two from East Palo Alto, will face misdemeanor charges.

--Bay City News Service, photo via Shutterstock