3 Newtown Businesses Cited For Tobacco-Selling Violations: Police

NEWTOWN, CT — A trio of Newtown businesses last week failed undercover operations when they did not properly ID underage customers and ended up selling them tobacco products, according to Newtown police.

Newtown Convenience on Church Hill Road; Hawleyville Sunocco on Hawleyville Road; and Wheels Citgo on South Main Street were each issued infractions by authorities.

Last week's sting detail, in which police send underage volunteers into establishments to make controlled purchases, was the second such operation Newtown police conducted this year.

Over the summer, four local businesses received infractions after selling vaping products to minors, but Newtown police said all four were in compliance when visited last week.

Newtown police and members of the state Tobacco Prevention Enforcement program conduct the compliance operations with a grant paid for by the Newtown Prevention Council.

"It is against Connecticut State law to sell or deliver tobacco or E-cigarette products to individuals under 21 years of age," Newtown police wrote on Facebook (see below). "According to the CDC nicotine can be harmful to the adolescent brain which continues to develop until about age 25."