Wal-Mart and the Big Y supermarket were forbidden to sell tobacco products on Monday and Tuesday of this week and fined $200 each for failing a quarterly Board of Health tobacco compliance check.
The Board of Health over the past few years has conducted stings on stores that sell tobacco products three or four times a year, said local health officials.
"We take it very seriously," said Health Director Robin Chapell. "We don't want anyone selling to anyone underage."
She said the board contacts the state Department of Public Heath to employ someone who is under 18 and looks under 18.
In each sting, the minor is instructed to attempt to purchase tobacco products from a store but not to lie about their age if asked by a clerk.
In the latest sting, Wal-Mart sold to the minor without asking for his/her age, but Big Y did ask for identification, Chapell said. The minor then gave the employee an ID that showed he/she was under 18 but the purchase went through anyhow - a situation Chapell called a "puzzlement."
She said she has contacted managers from both stores and both took the violations very seriously.
They will be in front of the Board of Health on Jan. 13, where they will face losing their tobacco license, according to Chapell. Since neither Wal-Mart nor the Big Y has been in violation over the past three years, Chapell suspects the board will be lenient.
Adam Hession, manager of the Big Y, declined comment. Wal-Mart manager William Pryor could not be reached.
