CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Two men were arrested late last week during an operation aimed at individuals who purchase alcohol for minors.
Clearlake residents Moses Scott and Richard Ketchum were arrested during the operation, which took place on Friday, May 3, and involved officers from the Clearlake Police Department and Agents from the Alcoholic Beverage Control.
The two agencies collaborated to conduct “shoulder tap” operations at various businesses in the city of Clearlake, according to Clearlake Police Officer Aaron Winslow.
Winslow explained that shoulder tap operations are law enforcement programs that the ABC and local law enforcement agencies use to deter and detect alcohol-related crimes involving the sale or furnishing of alcoholic beverages to minors.
During the operations, a minor is used as a decoy to solicit the purchase of alcoholic beverages from an adult, he said. Operations are conducted outside ABC-licensed businesses, Winslow said.
During the operation, numerous people were contacted by the minor decoys and Scott and Ketchum were arrested for criminal violations involving the furnishing of alcohol to minors, according to Winslow.
Winslow said Scott was released with a citation and Ketchum was transported to the Lake County Jail for additional violations which were discovered during his arrest.
This project is part of the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control’s Minor Decoy/ Shoulder Tap Grant Project, funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.