A STORE and its manager have been banned from selling alcohol after it emerged children as young as 11, including one who was rushed to hospital after poisoning himself with drink, were freely buying it from the shop.
Mohammad Babu handed the 11-year-old a can of caffeinated alcohol and told him to hide it down his trousers, while also telling his 14-year-old friend to conduct the sale out of view of the store's CCTV cameras.
Mr Babu also asked the boy, whose other two friends were 12, to pull down the shutters of his shop, the Day To Day store in Pollokshaws, Glasgow, before selling them cider and fortified flavoured wine.
The boys were found hours later by the police, with the 11-year-old being violently sick and crying.
The boy's head had to be held up by officers to prevent him choking on his vomit, while ambulance staff had to strip him of his wet clothes to raise his temperature as paramedics were unable to get a reading. He was taken to hospital as paramedics expressed concerns about his heart rate.
Police representatives at a meeting of the city's licensing board said the sale showed disregard for the children, while an officer on the scene said the 11-year-old may have been "found in more tragic circumstances".
The meeting was told Mr Babu had previously been reported for contraventions of the Licensing (Scotland) 2005 Act.
During the licensing board's hearing Mr Babu said he had sold the young boys soft drink.
However, the board's chairman Malcolm Cunning said: "What you would have us believe is something that is on the very borderline of utter unbelievability.
"From viewing the CCTV, the boy was pointing to where the alcohol is stacked and this is an area that is clearly marked in the shop plan as for off-sales. We have seen the most blatant instances of selling to persons who could not be described as anything other than little boys. We are lucky one of them is not dead.
"It is difficult for the board to say the licence holder is not liable and the entire responsibility falls to an aberrant member of staff."
During the meeting, lawyer Archie McIver, appearing for store owner Nadeem Shaukat, said: "It would be clear to a blind man what was going on."
He said Mr Babu was no longer employed there, while the police said Mr Shaukat told them he only employed him "as a result of pressure from family members".
After banning the Day To Day store from selling liquor the board also revoked Mr Babu's personal licence, despite his claims to have worked in the trade for 30 years blemish-free. Mr Cunning added: "I have never encountered such a blatant example of underage sales. I cannot see any circumstances where you should enjoy a licence again."
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