Beer Stop Beverage, located at 793 Bethlehem Pike in Hatfield Township.
The owner of a beer distributor in Hatfield Township is facing charges, after he allegedly continued to sell alcohol on an expired liquor license.
According to the criminal complaint, an investigation into the operations of Beer Stop Beverage—located at 793 Bethlehem Pike—began after a liquor enforcement officer with the Pennsylvania State Police received a complaint stating that the business continued to operate while their sales tax license was revoked. Once on location, investigators also learned that the liquor license had expired on April 30, 2017, and the business did not possess the authority to sell alcohol, the report states.
Between June 4 and June 6, investigators made a series of undercover purchases from the establishment, the report states. Two of those sales were made by the owner, identified as John Shalongo, 61, of Chalfont, according to the complaint.
On June 6, investigators spoke with Shalongo, who allegedly admitted to knowingly selling alcohol without a license for two years, according to the report. Shalongo also provided investigators with records of the illegal alcohol sales that occurred between June 4 and June 6, the report states.
Eight days later, another investigator arrived to Shalongo’s business in an undercover capacity, to see if Shalongo was still selling alcohol without a license. The investigator allegedly purchased a 24-ounce Miller Lite can, and identified Shalongo as the person who was operating the register, the report states. Then, on July 22, investigators confirmed that Shalongo had not renewed his license, nor had a temporary license been issued, according to the report.
As a result of the investigation, Shalongo has been charged with four misdemeanor counts of sales of malt/brewed beverages not for consumption, which represents each of the alleged undercover purchases. Shalongo’s first court action is a preliminary hearing in front of Magisterial District Judge Andrea Duffy on Nov. 4 at 10 a.m.
(Editor’s note: All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause, and reflects the point of view of the police. Should the defendant choose to issue a public statement, or is later found not guilty or has the charges dropped, we will update this article accordingly.)
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