22 Businesses in Waterford Busted for Underage Sales
(Scott Underwood Chief of Police Waterford Township, Nov. 25, 2024)
Waterford, MI- Waterford Township Police Conduct Alcohol and Vape Enforcement As summer was winding down and fall approached, along with the start of a new school year, the Waterford Police Department in cooperation with the Waterford Community Coalition, continued with our ongoing commitment to curtail the sale of alcohol and vape products to underage teens and young adults.
Over several weeks, licensed beer, wine and spirits retailers were visited in a covert fashion to check compliance with Michigan law regarding sales to minors. We also visited vape and smoke shops in the same way.
Sixty-three (63) retailers were checked for compliance.
Our intent is to ensure those establishments are being diligent about checking identification and operating responsibly under the terms of their license and Michigan law. As licensees of the Liquor Control Commission and responsible members of the Waterford community, these establishments have a duty to ensure they are only selling beer, wine and liquor, and/or vape products to people that are old enough to legally make those purchases.
Underage decoys were deployed and they attempted to purchase alcohol and/or vape products at each of the sixty-three (63) retail establishments visited.
Three (3) of those checked (listed below), violated state law and the terms of their license by selling alcohol to a person under twenty-one (21) years of age. Those retailers are licensed to sell beer, wine and liquor for consumption off of their premises.
Nineteen (19) of the vape and smoke shops checked (listed below) violated State law by selling vape products to a person under the age of twenty-one (21).
Alcohol Violations
Sunoco Gas 5990 Williams Lake Road
Waterford Party Shop 2685 Elizabeth Lake Road
CVS 7960 Cooley Lake Road
Vape Products Violations
Glass House Smoke and Vape 4883 Dixie Highway
Shell Gas 5775 Dixie Highway
Marathon Gas 3235 Walton Boulevard
The Smoke Shop 7938 Cooley Lake Road (twice)
Lit Tobacco, Vape and Headshop 6616 Cooley Lake Road
Aston Tobacco 7718 Cooley Lake Road
Wild Bill’s 5623 Dixie Highway
Glass House Smoke and Vape 3424 Highland Road
Clark Gas 3510 Highland Road
Mobil Gas 3000 Pontiac Lake Road
The Tobacco Shop 5380 Highland Road
Pontiac Lake Express 2891 Pontiac Lake Road
Waterford Glass and Vape 3579 Pontiac Lake Road
Marathon Gas 6800 Highland Road
VC Gas 7250 Highland Road
Lit Tobacco, Vape and Headshop 7524 Highland Road
Cloud 9 1026 Scott Lake Road
Smoke Buddy 1033 S. Cass Lake Road
Select Smoke Shop 5558 Cooley Lake Road
It is also important to recognize, forty-one (41) of the sixty-three (63) establishments checked, acted responsibly by asking for identification and refusing to sell alcohol and/or vape products to a person under twenty-one (21).
The retailers that sold alcohol to minors, who are licensed by the State of Michigan to do so, will be referred to the Liquor Control Commission for further action.
Vape and smoke shops that sold those products to minors were cited under State law. If a retailer that is licensed to sell alcohol, sold vape products to minors, they were cited under State law and will also be referred to the Liquor Control Commission for further action.
We will continue to check all LCC licensees and retailers selling vape products within the Township, at different times throughout each year. Those under age seeking to purchase alcohol, as well as those furnishing alcohol and/or vape products to minors are forewarned that enforcement efforts will continue.
We will employ all available investigative techniques as well as random uniform patrols to help curtail the purchase and consumption of alcohol and vape products by teens and young adults in our community.
