Outer Banks restaurants served drinks to underage patrons before crash, NC cops say
Two Outer Banks restaurants served alcohol to underage patrons before one of them drove off and crashed, officials said.
The customers were younger than the legal drinking age of 21 when they went out for mixed drinks at 3 Tequilas Restaurante Mexicano and Plaza Azteca Mexican Restaurant in Kill Devil Hills, according to the North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) division.
The N.C. State Highway Patrol said one of the patrons, an 18-year-old, left the establishments and was driving on state Road 1277 when the car ran off the roadway, went into a ditch and hit a tree, according to an incident report.
The driver was seriously injured in the crash that happened about 11 p.m. on Nov. 27 in Currituck County, near the Outer Banks barrier islands and the Virginia state line.
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Now, a month later, investigators said the driver, four other customers and two restaurant workers are facing alcohol-related charges.
Officials in a news release didn’t share attorney information for the restaurant customers or employees. A representative from 3 Tequilas didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ requests for comment on Dec. 29, and someone who answered a phone number listed for Plaza Azteca said the business declined to comment.
The single-car wreck reportedly caused an estimated $17,000 in damage. ALE said the driver “was suspected of being intoxicated prior to the crash” and started investigating where the alcohol came from.
“Through the course of the investigation, special agents determined [the driver] and four other teens visited two restaurants in Kill Devil Hills where employees served them mixed beverages over the course of a few hours,” officials said in their news release.
Now, an employee at 3 Tequilas and another at Plaza Azteca are facing several counts of serving alcohol to a person under 21, according to state investigators.
Officials said “violation reports” will also go to the N.C. Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) Commission, which could lead to fines or other penalties for the restaurants.
“We have seen a sharp increase in underage individuals being involved in serious vehicle crashes after consuming alcoholic beverages,” Eric Swain, ALE special agent in charge for the Greenville district, wrote in a statement. “We take these cases very seriously and any businesses serving underage patrons need to be held accountable.”
The five underage patrons, including the driver, were charged with purchase alcoholic beverages by underage, consumption by underage and underage possession of alcoholic beverages.
As of Dec. 29, the N.C. State Highway Patrol was still investigating the crash.
This story was originally published December 29, 2021 at 4:24 PM with the headline "Outer Banks restaurants served drinks to underage patrons before crash, NC cops say."
