On Monday, a Bethel District Court judge sentenced the co-owner of a Bethel cab company to 10 days in jail and another year on probation for selling alcohol illegally three years ago. Min Sook Cha was driving a cab for Quyana Cab, a company she owned with Sungwoong Jeong, when she sold alcohol to an undercover officer. This took place in March 2016 when any alcohol sales in Bethel were illegal.
Cha is the seventh person sentenced in connection with an undercover investigation of illegal alcohol sales at Quyana Cab. There are 13 more people who have been charged in the investigation that have not yet gone to trial. There are also two outstanding bench warrants for people who did not show up at their charging hearings.
Cha pled guilty to one count of selling alcohol without a license in exchange for dismissing other alcohol sales charges. She admitted that her sales crime was among the most serious. As part of her sentence, Cha cannot have any alcohol during her year on probation, and her cab can be searched at any time.
Though the Quyana Cab Company was charged for selling alcohol illegally, the company’s other owner, Sungwoong Jeong, was not charged. Quyana Cab is also no longer operating in Bethel. Its cab permits were bought by Kusko Cab.
There is a hearing in Bethel District Court next week to schedule additional trials coming out of the 2015 and 2016 investigations of Bethel cab drivers selling alcohol without a license.