Through its ongoing Operation Pop-Top, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) carried out a sting operation on Friday, November 22, to test if several stores in southeast Polk County were willing to sell alcohol to a minor.
According to the PCSO’s press release on November 23, “deputies visited a total of ten stores…aided by a 15-year old member of the PCSO’s Cadet 1000 program”. The “student attempted to purchase an alcoholic beverage at each of the stores, and was successful at the Dollar General store at 2871 Rifle Range Road”.
As a result, Dollar General employee Beatrice Duke, 73 years old, “was charged with selling alcohol to a person under 21-years of age, a misdemeanor”. Duke was released from jail on November 24 on a $250 bond and is still currently out on bail.
Sheriff Grady Judd stated that he does not “look at this arrest as a success, but more of a failure by this clerk to check this child for identification like the law requires. Stores that sell alcoholic beverages have a responsibility to do their part to keep alcohol out of the hands of minors”.
During the operation, deputies also checked one of the stores to verify that it was in compliance with the Florida Kratom Consumer Protection Act. This law, effective as of July 1, 2023, prohibits the “sale, delivery, bartering, furnishing, or giving of any kratom” drug products to anyone under the age of 21 years old and outlines criminal penalties for doing so.
Article by Ema Tibbetts