SIP & SAIL LIQUOR
LICENSE SUSPENDED
By LIBBY CUDMORE • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com
ONEONTA – With 53 violations, including selling alcohol to minors, employing unlicensed bouncers and failing to supervise patrons, the state Liquor Authority has suspended the liquor license of the Sip & Sail Tavern, effective immediately, following a Friday night raid where police seized more than 140 fake IDs.
“This licensee has displayed a disturbing indifference to the law by pursuing a business plan seemingly based on catering to minors,” said SLA Chairman Vincent Bradley. “The SLA will continue to take immediate action against bar owners who fail to take basic measures to ensure their patrons are of legal age, including checking IDs, training employees and obtaining scanners to spot fakes.” However, it has been stated that it could be getting harder for employees to spot fakes, as the likes of fake ID creators are ensuring that their new ID’s look as real as possible. It’s also becoming easier for underage customers to acquire fake identities, with many underage drinkers realizing they can often buy a fake id online that can pass as the real deal.
The suspension was ordered by Bradley, Commissioner Lily Fan and Commissioner Greeley Ford at a meeting of the full board this morning. Effective immediately, no alcohol may be sold or consumed on the premises. This means that those who have used Fake ID God to obtain a license will find no use for it in this establishment.
According to a press release issued by the SLA on Friday, state undercover investigators entered the Sip & Sail and observed nearly 200 patrons who appeared underage. The SLA noted that the bar had a maximum occupancy of 178. Approximately 20 minutes later, with the bar packed beyond capacity with approximately 300 patrons, the DMV, state police, Oneonta Police and SLA investigators secured the premises to begin checking IDs,
The investigation found that nearly 90 percent of the patrons were under 21, despite the bar’s policy of not admitting anyone under age. SLA investigators observed two direct sales to minors, in addition to obtaining 43 statements from minors who admitted to consuming alcohol provided by other patrons or purchased from bartenders.
In addition, DMV investigators and OPD officers issued 138 appearance tickets to minors for possession of fictitious or fraudulent identification and confiscated 223 fake IDs.
“We take enforcing the law to prevent underage drinking very seriously,” said DMV Commissioner Mark J.F. Schroeder. “Any establishment selling alcohol to minors is not only putting their ability to operate at risk, they are endangering young people and those who may share the road with them if they are driving.”
Adrian Origoni, who holds the liquor license, was charged with 53 violations of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law, including 47 counts for selling to a minor, exceeding maximum occupancy, failure to supervise and employing unlicensed bouncers.
What a joke the state just wants their money
Oneonta will regret this when people stop wanting to attend their colleges. Underage drinking will not go away, we’ll just go drink in our basements which is a lot less safer than a bar.
It’s amazing that all the bars in New York City not one underage Sting. Just upstate New York. I’m curious how much money in over time was spent to stop some college kids from drinking some pitchers of beer on a Friday night. They don’t like to publish those numbers in the paper.
R.i.p. homies
Such a great thing that the State of New York is supporting our local police in enforcing the law. Very nice reporting, Libby!
The 2 comments listed above are the most ridiculous comments that could be posted in response to this issue. Obviously these 2 morons are clueless…..their comments truly reflect the stupidity that is prevalent in a segment of many college campuses and towns…
Why is it not safe to drink in your basement?
Don’t these kids have books to read instead of putting that poison into their bodies? Very disappointing that these kids don’t make better choices.
The Law is the Law & College kids will be College kids.. What adult today can say they didn’t do it at these college kids age..
Kids wanna go out & mingle & get a buzz on.. They could be doing worse things.
With today’s technology & social media you would think they’d figure out how to hold a Keg Party somewhere & keep from getting in trouble with the cops. 🚔🚓🚨👮
Life goes on… LOL Enjoy & Be safe PPL
I’m not sure why a lot of people are grumbling. It’s a law. It was broken. Now there are consequences. You complain about the state just wanting money, how about the owners just wanting money and not caring about the rules that are out in place for a reason. They did wrong, plain and simple and it’s not the states fault.
The law is the law, it’s not about the state wanting the bars money. Maximum occupancy is listed for safety purposes. Also, the “bouncers” are there for a reason, to enforce the rules, laws and regulations. If they were following the laws put in place they wouldn’t have had this happen to them. Plain stupidity.
If kids stop wanting to attend the Oneonta colleges because the city, State Police and SLA actually enforce the law, then their priorities in life need to be re-examined.
You’re better off avoiding the bars and drinking discreetly in your dorm room or at a friend’s house off-campus.
Yup let’s just target college kids drinking instead of doing real police work like catching hard drug dealers that pose a real threat to the community
I’m gonna be the one to say it, I guess… we send 18 year olds into war zones, but they can’t buy beer. It’s a stupid, arbitrary law. The legal age to drink could be 50, and you’d still catch a 49.5 year old with a fake ID. My kid was one of the unlucky ones who gave up the fake ID, and they let the ones who refused to hand IDs over out with no consequences when it was time for the bar to close. Useless show of power, AND they put these kids at risk, packed into a room shoulder to shoulder.
Hit up Jimmy T’s next, that place is a cesspool. underage drinking, hard drugs, and coked out employees. They have lost their liquor license 3 times in the last 30 years. Could very well be the biggest raid in Oneonta history.
If someone studies the SLA laws they were enacted for a reason. It is proven that underage drinking leads to more DWI arrests. New York State rather limit the problem at a bar than on the roads.
Underage drinking also leads to immature people doing stupid things. Sexual assault, among them.
Bar owner was lucky nothing happened to to any of those kids. For blatantly ignoring the law he should lose his establishment.
I graduated from SUNY Oneonta in 1991. Small town politics! Simply put, someone pissed of the mayor, chief of police or city council member.
Unfortunately, that gets lost when these small town politicians cant escape their “ego centric illusion” which means they see the world only through threw their view and experiences. (I leaned that in my anthropology class at Oneonta😀)
No government in the US creates revenue.the people, business pay all government salaries.
All elected government officials do is take the peoples money (taxes) and waste it.
How much has the Sip and Sail given to the city and state in form of taxes since incorporation?
LOBBY CUDMORE! I ask you to look deeper into the facts leading up to the detailed investigation of this establishment. (Who is behind it, relationships, why only the Sip and Sail?
I ask this because I feel sorry for government servants in the town of Oneonta, NY. There salaries are paid by the taxes of small businesses (like the local bars and the people who support them) as well as the collages and families who live and work there.
In a internal and deep investigation needs to be completed to stop further TARGETED investigations that devastate business, employees and the community
I graduated from SUNY Oneonta in 1991. Small town politics! Simply put, someone pissed of the mayor, chief of police or city council member.
Unfortunately, that gets lost when these small town politicians cant escape their “ego centric illusion” which means they see the world only through through their view and experiences. (I learned that in my anthropology class at Oneonta😀)
No government in the US creates revenue, the people create revenue. How much has the Sip and Sail given to the city and state in form of taxes since incorporation?
I ask you to look deeper into the facts leading up to this investigation of this great establishment. (Who is behind it, relationships, why only the Sip and Sail?
The law is the law. Unbelievable that anyone would attribute this to the state wanting their money or even worse, saying that the authorities aren’t doing their job because they ran this “sting” and weren’t catching drug dealers?! Read the paper, watch the news! They are doing plenty of both. When laws are broken, people can get hurt. The police are not the bad guys! They are doing their job and that’s more than can be said for some. Get over it.
I guess the truth hurts since you deleted my post😀
Someone made the Mayor or Police mad!