California Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) agents spent four months, undercover, investigating illegal activity at a market in Stockton and what they found sent the store owner to prison and the store lost its license to sell liquor.
"Store owners should take notice, if community members suspect illegal activity at a store in their neighborhood, our California Statewide Law Enforcement Association members (CSLEA) who are ABC agents, are going to move in," said CSLEA President Alan Barcelona. "They are going to go in, undercover, find out what's going on and put a stop to it."
On Tuesday, April 16, ABC agents posted a Notice of Revocation at Fast & Easy Market located at 244 West Harding Way. The notice means the store can no longer sell alcohol.
ABC agents were assisted by federal investigators looking into the illegal use of food stamps.
Five times, during the investigation, an undercover ABC agent sold what was purported to be stolen property to the store owner and two of his employees.
The store owner, Sukhwinder Singh, was arrested for receiving purportedly stolen property. He was also arrested by federal officers for the unauthorized use of food stamps. He has already pleaded guilty to the federal charges and no contest to the receiving stolen property charge. He was sentenced to two years in prison and, following his prison sentence, he will spend years on probation. He must make restitution payments to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for $75,000. The total loss to the USDA was $193,609. Sing is also permanently disqualified from participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
