3 McLean Supermarkets Charged with Selling Liquor to Minors

Three of McLean's major supermarkets have been charged with selling alcohol to a minor.

The McLean Safeway, the Anderson Road Safeway and the Giant in downtown McLean were among seven businesses charged with illegal liquor sales over the weekend by Fairfax County police.

Officers from the and the Traffic Safety Unit conducted business compliance checks at several locations in the Falls Church, McLean and Vienna areas of Fairfax County on Aug. 26, according to a press release from the Fairfax County police.

The sting was conducted using county police cadets dressed in plain clothing who entered stores to purchase alcohol. The ABC sting/business compliance operation was conducted using two teams, consisting of one cadet, one plain-clothed officer and one uniformed officer serving as a security team, police said.

If asked whether the cadet was 21 years old, they would respond with their true age and/or date of birth. If asked for identification, they would tell the clerk that they had no identification. If the sale of alcohol took place, the plain-clothed officer would take possession of the alcohol from the cadet and make the appropriate charge(s), along with assistance from the uniformed officer assigned to the team, police said.

As a result of this operation, 27 locations were entered and seven were charged with the illegal sale of alcohol to a minor.

Safeway-7401 Anderson Road, Falls Church       

Safeway-6244 Old Dominion Drive, McLean

Giant-1454 Chain Bridge Road, McLean  

The others outside of McLean but within the McLean Police District.
 
Super A Market-2800 Graham Road, Falls Church            

Safeway-7397 Lee Highway, Falls Church                 

Stop & Go Food Mart-7600 Lee Highway, Falls

7-Eleven-7243 Arlington Blvd, Falls Church                

Underage possession of alcohol continues to be a concern to the Fairfax County Police Department. For more information on underage drinking and prevention programs, log on and learn more about the Unified Prevention Coalition at www.unifiedpreventioncoalition.org/.