Five Pleasanton businesses cited for selling cigarettes to minors

Five Pleasanton businesses were cited over the weekend for selling cigarettes to underage police decoys.
On Saturday Pleasanton police cited the Vista Bottle Shop on West Las Positas Boulevard, Beverages and More on Johnson Drive, Chevron on Hopyard Road, Union 76 on First Street and Shell on Hopyard Road for selling cigarettes to someone under 18.
According to a press statements, plainclothes officers and decoys visited a total of 38 businesses. The other 33 establishments visited did not sell cigarettes to minors.
Violators are subjected to either a misdemeanor or a civil action, police said. Fines for a first offense start at $200.
Officers also checked to make sure each business had a valid tobacco retail license, and that they had posted mandatory signs that say selling tobacco to people under 18 is prohibited.
The sting was in conjunction with the Alameda County Public Health Department.