CLEVELAND, Ohio — State agents busted a fencing ring that sold thousands of dollars worth of stolen home-repair equipment being sold from a bar in the city’s West Side, according to the Ohio Investigative Unit.
The agents raided the Ridge Cafe on Clark Avenue on Thursday after an investigation into the bar. No charges have been filed but agents said the case will be presented to a Cuyahoga County grand jury for consideration of criminal charges.
Investigators said customers stole the items from Home Depot and Lowe’s, including hot water tanks, roofing shingles, plumbing and building supplies, liquor and food stamps. They would then sell the stolen goods at the bar, police said.
People at the bar sold heroin, cocaine and crack to customers, according to officials.
The OIU, Cleveland and Middleburg Heights police used undercover officers to buy drugs and sell items to the bar, according to reports. They sold more than $10,000 worth of items that the suspects believed were stolen, the OIU said.
The agents raided the bar Thursday and seized seized $12,000 worth of suspected stolen items, two food stamp cards and $57,644, the OIU.
The OIU said it expects to file administrative charges with the Ohio Liquor Control Commission, including five counts of receiving stolen property, five counts of illegal possession of food stamps, food stamp trafficking, illegally possessing liquor from an unauthorized source and possessing and selling drugs.
Those charges carry penalties that include fines and possible suspension or revocation of the bar’s liquor license.
The bar has liquor violation cases dating back to 1987, according to state records.
Employees of the bar sold liquor without a valid license in 1990, failed to pay taxes several times, and were cited for having unsanitary conditions three times since 2008.
Agents found insects in liquor bottles in 2008, unsanitary bathroom conditions in 2013 and found that the bar was storing liquor in an unsanitary way in 2013 and 2016, according to the records.
Attempts to reach bar management were unsuccessful.
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