NORWICH – The criminal charges against the operators of A&R Smoke Shop on North Broad Street in the City of Norwich have been dismissed at the recommendation of the Chenango County District Attorney's Office.

On August 3, 2023, the operators of A&R Smoke Shop on North Broad Street in the City of Norwich were arrested and charged with several crimes relating to selling alcohol and tobacco to minors.

On Thursday this week the operators of the business, Jaswinder and Harminder Singh presented City of Norwich Court documentation to The Evening Sun showing the case was no longer active and sealed.

A translator accompanying the men said the charges were unfounded and had been dropped.

When presented with the documents an assistant district attorney at Chenango County District Attorney's Office declined to acknowledge the case had ever existed on Thursday or which public officials handled it.

They advised contacting the defense attorney for information about the case, but wouldn't identify who the defense attorney was. A part of the arrangement made in the case included sealing the court records, making information about it inaccessible to the public.

Smyrna Defense Attorney Scott J. Clippinger represented the men in court and confirmed the charges had been dismissed. He asked not to comment further.

The men were arrested in the case after a month-long investigation by the Norwich Police Department. Police said the investigation was triggered by complaints they received from the public.

At the time NPD Chief Reuben J. Roach said, “This was a revolving door for our underage youth to purchase these products.”

However in court, Clippinger said there was no evidence to prove the men had ever sold to any local underage youths and said the case only involved elements of undercover law enforcement.

Clippinger said the defendants had elected to take training courses following their arrests and prosecutors were required to dismiss many of the charges in court.

No additional public information about the case was made available.

(If you have been charged with a crime and had the charges dismissed in court and would like the Evening Sun to publish that information, email news@evesun.com or call (607) 337-3070. The Evening Sun requires a record from the court verifying the outcome of the case and the defense attorney's contact information. The records must be obtained by the defense and presented for verification. Note: Previous stories about initial arrests will not be removed online.)