LAWRENCE, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Around 11 p.m. Thursday, officers with the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission went into the Claddagh Pub in Lawrence to find 43 minors drinking using fake identification.
"Investigators found the bar to be crowded when they arrived and observed that it emptied out as they began to request that young looking people provide proof of legal drinking age," the Office of the State Treasurer wrote in a release. "Most were approximately 19 years of age."
The bust was part of the Mass ABCC's "Operation Safe Campus" program, which seeks to enforce liquor laws at college-area drinking establishments.
"Bars and restaurants have an obligation to responsibly serve their patrons," State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg said in a release. "We will continue to step up our monitoring and enforcement actions because we know that this can save lives and prevent tragedies before they happen."
The bar will be summoned for a hearing before the Control Commission. Depending on what happens at that hearing, the bar's liquor license could be suspended, modified, or even revoked.
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(Photo: Getty Images)