‘Blew my mind’: Woman says Lincolnton vape shop sold to 14-year-old grandson

LINCOLNTON, N.C. — A local woman says a vape shop sold her 14-year-old grandson a nicotine vape. She contacted police but she said they couldn’t take action.

That’s when that grandmother turned to Channel 9’s Hunter Sáenz, who found selling tobacco to minors is a bigger problem than you may think.

Dianne Steele considers herself a caring grandmother and was both stunned and worried when she caught her 14-year-old grandson with a nicotine vape.

“I understand that 14-year-old kids are going to experiment and stuff,” she said.

But she told Sáenz she was angry when she found out how he got it. Her grandson eventually confessed to going to T&M Smoke Shop with a friend and being sold a vape product. The only problem is, both of them were minors and they say they were never asked for an ID.

In North Carolina, you must be 18 to buy vape products. Steele was outraged and paid a visit to the shop.

“I asked him, I said, ‘Do y’all make it a practice here to sell to underage kids?’ He said, ‘Of course not.’ I said, ‘Well, you did!’”

That’s when she called the Lincolnton Police Department. Officers paid the smoke shop a visit and drew up a police report. The only problem is, the Lincolnton Police Department said local police can’t enforce something like this.

“That really blew my mind! That’s why I called you guys,” Steele said.

It turns out the state’s Alcohol Law Enforcement, or ALE, is who monitors and enforces laws at tobacco shops, along with the Food and Drug Administration.

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Sáenz pulled data from the FDA’s website. It says over the last few years, in Lincolnton alone, 15 businesses were caught selling tobacco products to minors. T&M Smoke Shop is on that list and received a warning letter.

“It just says to me that the dollar means more to those people than somebody’s health,” Steele said.

Sáenz went to the store to get their side. He found someone behind the counter who said he was 15. An employee told Sáenz off camera he believed the customer in question was 21 and that he saw ID.

The owner of T&M Smoke Shop spoke to Sáenz off camera and said he said they take these matters seriously. He said he saw ID showing the buyer was 21 years old. He said often times when this happens, minors pay a 21 year old to go into the shop and buy a product for them. He said he believes that’s what happened with Steele’s grandson.

Steele said she wants change to better protect children.

“I want them to know that people really do care about these kids and what they do, and I want them to take responsibility for what is happening,” she said.

Dianne Steele believes local police would be better suited to enforce things like this.

The FDA says in the last few years, 182 businesses that sell tobacco in Charlotte sold to minors. Some were cited but a majority were given warning letters.

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