#MiddleburyCT #IllegalSales #Alcohol #Minors
L to R, Dhruviben Parikh, in handcuffs, is escorted out of International Wine and Spirits by Officers Erik Markiewicz and Daniel Gillotti on July 28, 2026. Police allege she illegally sold alcohol to minors. (Marjorie Needham photo)
By MARJORIE NEEDHAM
Middlebury Police Officer Erik Markiewicz, working with Officer Daniel Gillotti, served an arrest warrant Tuesday, July 28, on International Wine and Spirits owner Dhruviben H. Parikh of Waterbury, 42, alleging she illegally sold alcohol to minors. The store at 750 Straits Turnpike in Middlebury, Connecticut, is the Middlebury liquor store closest to Post University. Middlebury Police Chief Patrick Deely said sources told police the liquor store was known to under-age youth in the area as a place that would sell alcoholic beverages to them without asking for an ID.
Deely said security camera footage seized earlier by the police department showed the late David Young, 18, was not asked to produce an ID when he purchased alcohol there on two occasions on Friday, July 10. Young died after a traffic accident at 12:35 a.m. on Saturday, July 11. At this time, there is no known connection between the two events.
A second arrest warrant, also for illegally selling alcohol to minors, was issued for Sriman Sriramula, 24, of Waterbury. He was not in the store at the time of the first arrest but was asked to turn himself in to police. Deely reported he did turn himself in and is now in custody.
The building at 750 Straits Turnpike sits at the corner of Straits Turnpike and Country Club Road. Its once housed Middlebury’s Best Yogurt and a tanning salon, both of which have gone out of business. Remaining businesses include International Wine & Spirits and Subway.
This article will be updated as more information comes in.
UPDATED 7/28/2026 at 2:08 p.m. to correct the dates of the sales and the accident. Also added that he was not asked to produce an ID.
UPDATE: Parikh identified as owner, not employee.
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