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Corner shop known for 'super-strength cider' faces closure after drunk woman flashed bum
AJ's, located on Crescent Road in Middlesbrough is facing a licence review due to concerns raised by Cleveland Police and Middlesbrough Council Licensing Authority
A tipsy woman reportedly 'flashed her bum' at a male worker after being denied more booze at a corner shop.
The store, known for selling "strong and cheap" single cans of beer and cider, is now linked to crime and disorder in the Middlesbrough area, according to police and council officers.
AJ's, located on Crescent Road, is facing a licence review due to concerns raised by Cleveland Police and Middlesbrough Council Licensing Authority. They requested a review last year, citing reasons of preventing crime, disorder, and public nuisance.
The corner shop, which sits opposite Ayresome Primary School, has been under the license of Savior Selvaras Tharmeswaran since October 2023. Reports suggest that two 'very drunk women', seen arguing and swearing, left the shop after one 'flashed her backside' at the assistant when he refused to sell her more alcohol.
On another occasion, a 'clearly drunk' man was seen leaving the shop with a can of what appeared to be Stella Artois lager. A public health official also reported seeing about 50 crates of "high strength" Knights cider stacked from floor to ceiling in AJ's storeroom.
A local police officer has raised concerns about a shop's alcohol licence due to high levels of crime and disorder. PC Amy Roberts said: "Cleveland Police state that there are high levels of alcohol-related crime and anti-social behaviour in the local area, and are concerned about anti-social behaviour in and around the shop.
In addition, Cleveland Police have concerns in relation to the management of the premises and point to non compliance with premises licence conditions and a lack of understanding of licensing legislation by staff working at the premises."
She added: "On 8th September 2023, I attended the premises with representatives from Public Health after concerns were raised with Middlesbrough Council.
"Upon attending the premise we were met by a female, heavily intoxicated stumbling out of the premise with a single can in her hand. Both were a little agitated after being inside the premises and refused further alcohol.
"Upon entering it was clear that two male members of staff were unaware of what our role was and didn't seem to have an understanding around the Licensing Act."
PC Roberts added that CCTV was retained for 25 days, not 31 as per the licence. There was also reportedly non-adherence to 'no refusals book, no incident book and no documented training'.
"I had concerns around the sale of small grip seal bags and small plastic type pipe objects, which to me is for one use only and that is linked to drug use," the document adds.
The document reveals the shop sells single cans of strong beers, lagers and ciders. One such product is Knights cider; an 8.4% ABV tipple sold in a single 500ml can. "It is deemed highly attractive to those vulnerable drinkers, suffering with alcohol dependency due to it being strong and cheap," the report states.
Another officer said the strong cans "were stacked from floor to ceiling."
Middlesbrough Council will decide on Thursday (February 15) whether to review the shop's licence. This could mean the licence gets taken away, suspended, or the conditions changed.
Daily Star Sunday
AJ's, located on Crescent Road in Middlesbrough is facing a licence review due to concerns raised by Cleveland Police and Middlesbrough Council Licensing Authority
A tipsy woman reportedly 'flashed her bum' at a male worker after being denied more booze at a corner shop.
The store, known for selling "strong and cheap" single cans of beer and cider, is now linked to crime and disorder in the Middlesbrough area, according to police and council officers.
AJ's, located on Crescent Road, is facing a licence review due to concerns raised by Cleveland Police and Middlesbrough Council Licensing Authority. They requested a review last year, citing reasons of preventing crime, disorder, and public nuisance.
The corner shop, which sits opposite Ayresome Primary School, has been under the license of Savior Selvaras Tharmeswaran since October 2023. Reports suggest that two 'very drunk women', seen arguing and swearing, left the shop after one 'flashed her backside' at the assistant when he refused to sell her more alcohol.
On another occasion, a 'clearly drunk' man was seen leaving the shop with a can of what appeared to be Stella Artois lager. A public health official also reported seeing about 50 crates of "high strength" Knights cider stacked from floor to ceiling in AJ's storeroom.
A local police officer has raised concerns about a shop's alcohol licence due to high levels of crime and disorder. PC Amy Roberts said: "Cleveland Police state that there are high levels of alcohol-related crime and anti-social behaviour in the local area, and are concerned about anti-social behaviour in and around the shop.
In addition, Cleveland Police have concerns in relation to the management of the premises and point to non compliance with premises licence conditions and a lack of understanding of licensing legislation by staff working at the premises."
She added: "On 8th September 2023, I attended the premises with representatives from Public Health after concerns were raised with Middlesbrough Council.
"Upon attending the premise we were met by a female, heavily intoxicated stumbling out of the premise with a single can in her hand. Both were a little agitated after being inside the premises and refused further alcohol.
"Upon entering it was clear that two male members of staff were unaware of what our role was and didn't seem to have an understanding around the Licensing Act."
PC Roberts added that CCTV was retained for 25 days, not 31 as per the licence. There was also reportedly non-adherence to 'no refusals book, no incident book and no documented training'.
"I had concerns around the sale of small grip seal bags and small plastic type pipe objects, which to me is for one use only and that is linked to drug use," the document adds.
The document reveals the shop sells single cans of strong beers, lagers and ciders. One such product is Knights cider; an 8.4% ABV tipple sold in a single 500ml can. "It is deemed highly attractive to those vulnerable drinkers, suffering with alcohol dependency due to it being strong and cheap," the report states.
Another officer said the strong cans "were stacked from floor to ceiling."
Middlesbrough Council will decide on Thursday (February 15) whether to review the shop's licence. This could mean the licence gets taken away, suspended, or the conditions changed.
Daily Star Sunday