LEONARDTOWN, MD (January 24, 2025) – On January 21, 2025, The St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office Alcohol Enforcement Unit conducted a succession of tobacco compliance checks within St. Mary's County. The covert compliance checks involved using an underage Sheriff's Office confidential informant (CI). The 19-year-old CI was wearing athletic attire and was instructed to enter the store and retrieve a tobacco product from the business in an effort to purchase said product. The CI was accompanied by Sergeant Robert Merritt, who wore civilian attire and observed all underage tobacco transactions.
The Sheriff’s Office visited 23 business locations, and 19 businesses passed the compliance check and asked the CI for their driver’s license; four businesses failed to ask and/or verify any identification; therefore, tobacco products were sold to an underage person.
Businesses passing compliance checks:
Leonardtown Cigars - 40955 Merchants Lane Suite14, Leonardtown
Merchants Lane Fine Wine & Spirits - 40845 Merchants Lane, Leonardtown
Food Lion Store 656 - 40955 Merchants Lane, Leonardtown
Walgreens - 40955 Merchants Lane, Leonardtown
Centre Liquors - 40955 Merchant Lane, Leonardtown
Exxon Dash-In Store 099 - 26065 Point Lookout Road, Leonardtown
Pal Liquors & Gas - 25965 Point Lookout Road, Leonardtown
Leonardtown Birdies - 25355 Point Lookout Road, Leonardtown
Fastop Store 52 - 23952 Point Lookout Road, Leonardtown
Beacon Liquors - 20975 Point Lookout Road, Callaway
The Corner Store (Callaway Shell) - 20943 Point Lookout Road, Callaway
Bob's Sunoco - 20321 Piney Point Road, Callaway
Abell’s Tavern - 20281 Piney Point Road, Callaway
WJ Dent & Sons/Chief's Bar - 44584 Tall Timbers Road, Tall Timbers
P. Point Market - 17449 Piney Point Road, Piney Point
Russell's Store - 44894 Blake Creek Road, Valley Lee
Dollar General - 20877 Point Lookout Road, Callaway
St. Mary's Fine Wine & Spirits - 20141 Point Lookout Road, #13, Great Mills
Cooks Spirit - 18400 Point Lookout Road, Park Hall
The following four businesses failed to ask for identification and sold tobacco to an underage person.
Optimal Vapor - 40955 Merchants Lane, Leonardtown
The Toasted Foot Lounge- 20845 Callaway Village Way, Callaway
Sheetz Store #318- 20760 Old Great Mills Road, Great Mills
The Leonardtown Wine & Spirits- 25470-B Point Lookout Road, Leonardtown
