Minnesota’s Largest Candy Store owner charged with illegally selling liquor-filled candies

The owner of Minnesota’s Largest Candy Store has been charged with reportedly selling liquor-filled candies without a license. On Oct. 27, Scott County prosecutors charged Robert Wagner, 66, with directly or indirectly selling alcoholic beverages from his sprawling store along Hwy. 169 in Jordan. Prosecutors allege that the store sold liquor-filled candies sometime before July 1 and that candies were sold to a minor without checking their identification. Minnesota’s Largest Candy Store has been a popular tourist attraction and cultural landmark for decades. According to the criminal complaint, agents with the Minnesota Department of Public Safety began investigating Wagner after receiving an anonymous tip that the store sold liquor-filled candies to a minor. Advertisement On July 22, undercover agents searched the store and found a section of the sprawling shop dedicated to alcoholic beverage candies. Many of those candies include a warning on the back that read, “Sales of this product to persons under the legal age for purchasing alcoholic beverages is unlawful.” After the agents bought candy infused with brandy and whiskey, they returned a few hours later with a search warrant. According to the complaint, when agents told Wagner about the illegal sales, he told them he was aware the store does not have a liquor license, but that he believed the store could sell any of the alcoholic convections and beverage candies he had in stock. Expanded image view Customers picked out sweets at Minnesota's Largest Candy Store. The store is one of Jordan's biggest commercial attractions. ( Special To The Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune ) On Monday at his store, Wagner said he stopped selling candies with alcohol after the law enforcement operation. Wearing red suspenders and a tie with multicolored jelly beans, Wagner said he still believed he can sell the candies that agents charged him for. However, he said he might pay the fine instead of pleading not guilty if the case grows expensive.