What Happened
An employee at a Shirley deli was arrested at approximately 3:10 p.m. Wednesday after selling alcohol to an underage police agent, according to a press release from the Suffolk County Police Department.
Seventh Precinct Criminal Investigative Unit officers ran the operation at V&W Parkway Deli, 431 William Floyd Parkway, Shirley. The operation was initiated in response to community complaints about the store.
During the sting, an underage police agent entered the deli and was sold an alcoholic beverage by an employee. Leydi Molina Flores was identified as the employee who made the sale and was placed under arrest.
The Suffolk County Police Department confirmed Molina Flores was charged following the transaction. No additional employees or ownership were named in the initial release.
Location & Road Context
V&W Parkway Deli sits at 431 William Floyd Parkway, a major north-south commercial corridor running through Shirley in the Town of Brookhaven. William Floyd Parkway carries heavy retail and residential traffic between the William Floyd Parkway/Sunrise Highway interchange to the south and the Wading River area to the north.
Suffolk County’s local incident database has recorded 845 incidents in the county. Wednesday’s arrest adds to a pattern of enforcement activity in the area — earlier the same day, Suffolk County officers also arrested a man for burglary after locating him via police drone and arrested a man for boating while intoxicated after rescuing him from a sinking vessel.
Investigation & Legal Proceedings
Molina Flores was charged under New York’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Law provisions prohibiting the sale of alcohol to a person under 21. The Suffolk County Police Department press release did not specify arraignment date, bail amount, or whether charges extend to the deli’s owner or liquor license holder.
The State Liquor Authority has independent authority to act on a licensee’s record when an employee is arrested for an underage sale, though no SLA action was announced in the initial release.
Broader Impact
A first-offense conviction for selling alcohol to a minor under New York Alcoholic Beverage Control Law § 65 carries a fine of up to $1,000 and potential suspension or revocation of the establishment’s liquor license. Community complaints drove this operation, meaning the deli had already drawn attention before Wednesday’s arrest.