San Francisco convenience store sued for allegedly selling meth

The city of San Francisco is suing a downtown San Francisco corner store for allegedly selling methamphetamine and other illegal drugs in the middle of the Tenderloin neighborhood.

Read more Massive experimental aircraft crashes off US coastline

The filed on Wednesday by San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu, alleged that owners of the “Corner Store” at the intersection of Eddy and Leavenworth streets sold meth, marijuana, illegal tobacco and drug paraphernalia. The lawsuit does not list an exact date for when the alleged drug sales started but said the owners have worked there since 2023. 

SFGATE was unable to reach the owners for comment before the time of publication.

In 2024, the city began to receive complaints about illegal tobacco sales at the store, prompting an undercover operation from San Francisco’s Department of Public Health. 

An undercover inspector went to the store and asked the clerks if they sold Geek Bar products, a popular brand of electronic nicotine vapes. The clerks allegedly told the inspector they didn’t have Geek Bars but that they sold other flavored nicotine products. Flavored vapes have been banned from San Francisco stores since 2018. 

The undercover investigator purchased a POD Mesh Chilled Blue Razz vape, and the health department subsequently issued a notice of violation to the store in April 2024. Then, in November 2025, state and local authorities raided the business and seized 48.1 grams of meth, 4.68 pounds of marijuana, a “ghost gun” handgun, and dozens of illegal tobacco products, the lawsuit said. 

Read more Pirates get a season-high 20 hits and beat the Giants 13-3

The city is demanding that the store shut down for one year and stop selling the illegal products. The city is asking the judge to enforce $25,000 in civil penalties against each owner, with potentially more damages determined later.

Chiu alleged that selling the illegal drugs has “attracted criminal and nuisance activity to the surrounding community.” He pointed to the “problems” that occur on the 400 block of Eddy Street, with “large groups of drug users” coming to the area.

The lawsuit is also part of a bigger crackdown on Tenderloin corner stores for allegedly selling illegal products and being involved in illegal activity, such as gambling. In late January, Chiu targeted several stores for allegedly being “gambling and drug dens that fronted as convenience stores,” SFGATE previously reported. That initiative did not include the Corner Store, but it did include several other stores on the same block.

The city has also imposed a which prevents certain stores and smoke shops in the Tenderloin from operating between midnight and 5 a.m.