An off licence operator in Barry has been prosecuted for serving alcohol to under agecustomers. Chiragkumar Patel, who was running Shreeji Stores on Coldbrook Road East when a Trading Standards officer visited over a year ago, was fined more than £2,500 after the Shared Regulatory Service (SRS) brought a case against him.
The Trading Standards officer visited the shop in December 2021 accompanied by 15 and 16-year-old volunteers following complaints from parents. The volunteers approached the counter, where Patel was working, and attempted to buy a box of fruit cider priced at £12.99.
Patel asked how old one of the volunteers was and, on being told 15, explained a person had to be at least 18 to purchase alcohol. He then charged him an additional £1.01 for the cans, which were removed from their box, placed in black bags and handed over outside the shop, where Patel had told the volunteer to wait.
