Brothel passes underage alcohol sting, others don't

Lyon County Sheriff's deputies liked what they saw while conducting a underage alcohol sting at the Moonlite BunnyRanch on Thursday.

The ranch, which has been warned once and cited twice in the past year for serving liquor to minors, has installed a new sign in front of the building advising anyone under 25 to have their identification out.

According to Sgt. Paul VanDiver, the underage minor decoy used by the Lyon County Sheriff's Department never made it past the front door of the brothel. The underage minor provided ID to the staff and was immediately asked to leave.

"The Moonlite BunnyRanch had a rocky start during the initiation period of our new Alcohol Compliance Check program," said VanDiver, who oversees the Enforcing Under Age Drinking Laws (EUDL) program. "The employees stayed diligent and attended every Alcohol Server Training available in the county. They even went to the extent to have the Sheriff's Department put on a special training just for Moonlite employees."

VanDiver said if a business has been cited three times in a year for serving minors, the sheriff will ask the Lyon County commissioners to pull the establishment's business license.

The BunnyRanch has instituted a no-tolerance policy for its employees regarding the serving of minors, VanDiver said, adding that the last time they were cited the employee who served the minor decoy was fired on the spot.

"These are the types of partnerships we need with local businesses to deter underage drinking in our community," said Sgt. VanDiver. "They're doing everything they can. They're trying to curb the problem."

The Lyon County Sheriff's Department conducted nine alcohol compliance checks in Dayton and Mound House on Thursday.

Businesses that passed included the BunnyRanch, Squeeze Play Adult Cabaret, Dayton Discount Liquor, Carniceria La Reina and Chuck's Old West Bar and Grill.

Businesses caught in the sting were Wench Haus Bar, on its second citation; Wang's Chinese Restaurant, also receiving its second citation; Mound House General Store and Pizza King. An employee who served the underage minor alcohol in each of these businesses was given a misdemeanor citation in the amount of $1,132.

Anybody with questions or concerns related to the program can call Sgt. VanDiver at the Lyon County Sheriff's Department or coordinator Mary Boettcher at 775-246-0320.

• Contact reporter Karen Woodmansee at kwoodmansee@nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111 ext. 351.