Employees from five Lynnwood stores sold tobacco to teenagers during a tobacco sting conducted by the Lynnwood Police Department last month.
Three out of the five establishments asked the teenagers for their identification and sold them tobacco products despite their identification showing the teens were underage.
Two out of those three establishments are repeat offenders and had failed during a liquor sting the police department organized last spring.
The person who sells the product is cited up to $1,000 and charged with a gross misdemeanor. Washington State Liquor Control Board officials have been notified of the employees’ non-compliance and may take disciplinary action as well. The police department’s Special Operations Section conducted the tobacco sting Nov. 7 focusing on stores that sell tobacco.
Lynnwood is not faring any worse than other cities when it comes to minors purchasing tobacco products, said Shannon Sessions, police department spokeswoman.
“It’s just something extra we do to help enforce and protect our city,” Sessions said in an e-mail.
Three 15- to 17-year-old agents visited 51 stores in Lynnwood to purchase tobacco products. The teens were instructed if asked to show their actual ID cards that show they are younger than 18.
Sessions said there was not a specific event or trend that prompted the department to conduct the tobacco sting.
“It’s just one of the many things our Special Operations Section is committed in doing randomly throughout each year,” she said.
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