Folsom sushi spot facing discipline for serving alcohol to minor, killed in car crash
The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has arrested two employees at a popular Folsom sushi restaurant, accusing them of serving alcohol to an underage woman and to another “obviously intoxicated” 21-year-old in September. The minor was killed in a vehicle crash and the other woman was arrested on suspicion of DUI that same night.
ABC says 47-year-old Tomas Green of Folsom and Jae Jo, 28, of Sacramento were arrested Wednesday, each accused of furnishing alcohol to a minor, resulting in death. Green faces an additional charge, for over-serving “another person who was exhibiting signs of obvious intoxication” on the same night, late Sept. 19 into early morning Sept. 20, the department said Thursday in a news release.
Green and Jo allegedly served alcohol to 20-year-old Yasmina Azamatova of Antelope at Blue Nami, a sushi restaurant located in Folsom’s Palladio shopping center, the news release said.
Azamatova died in a single-vehicle crash early Sept. 20 on East Bidwell Street and Oak Avenue Parkway, less than two miles away from Blue Nami. Azamatova, the only occupant of the vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.
Agents with ABC “examined evidence, and were able to determine that Green and Jo furnished alcohol to Azamatova at the Catch a Wave by Blue Nami restaurant in Folsom,” where both men worked, the news release said.
“ABC agents also discovered that during the same time frame, Green also furnished alcohol to a 21-year-old woman who was showing signs of obvious intoxication at the time of service,” the release continued. “Minutes after leaving Catch a Wave by Blue Nami, the 21-year-old woman was arrested by the California Highway Patrol for driving under the influence (DUI) in the area of Highway 50 and Bradshaw Road.”
The 21-year-old arrested for DUI was not identified by name.
ABC says it will be seeking disciplinary action against Blue Nami’s alcoholic beverage license for furnishing to a minor. This could be a monetary fine or suspension of the license, but the exact penalty sought has not yet been determined, the news release said.
Thursday’s news release included photos of Jo and Green, dressed in black servers’ outfits, being escorted in handcuffs by ABC agents at the Palladio.
Blue Nami management did not immediately respond to The Bee’s requests for comment Thursday. The Blue Nami Group operates two other sushi restaurants in the Sacramento area: A Taste of Japan in Roseville and Sushi & Sake House in Orangevale.
The CHP and the Folsom Police Department assisted with the investigation led by ABC’s Target Responsibility for Alcohol Connected Emergencies (TRACE) program.
ABC says it opened the investigation “immediately after the crash to find out the source of the alcohol consumed by the underage driver.”
“Nami” means “wave” in Japanese.
