Citations Issued in Alcohol Sting

Employees at 20 stores and restaurants in Westlake Village, Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park were cited during a police sting operation over the weekend for allegedly selling alcohol to minors, authorities said.

Sheriff’s deputies enlisted several 18- and 19-year-olds to attempt to purchase alcohol Friday and Saturday nights at about 100 businesses. Employees who sold alcohol to a minor were cited and released at the scene.

The sting was scheduled to coincide with graduation and the beginning of summer break, authorities said.

Deputies cited seven businesses in a similar sting conducted last year. In 1997, 15 businesses were cited.

Officials from the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control had notified businesses that sell alcohol in the east county about the sting operation.