Two Picayune restaurants received citations from the Mississippi Attorney General’s Alcohol & Tobacco Enforcement Division for selling alcohol to minors.

Applebee’s on Memorial Boulevard and El Mariachi on South Haugh Avenue each received a violation during alcohol and beer compliance checks conducted in Picayune and Oxford, which resulted in the issuance of six total citations for selling alcohol to minors, according to a press release from the Office of the Attorney General State of Mississippi.

Attorney General Jim Hood said in the press release that alcohol checks are conducted frequently in order to make sure businesses are following the state’s alcohol and tobacco laws statewide.

“In these routine checks, we issue citations to bartenders or servers. We like to keep vigilance high, particularly in college towns, but also in surrounding areas,” Hood said.

Jose Gutierrez, owner of El Mariachi, said a citation was given to one of his servers who asked for a customer’s identification prior to serving a drink, but failed to properly check the birthdate.

“He takes responsibility for his mistake. It’s a good thing the state is doing that because all the other servers saw what happened, so they’re going to learn from his mistake,” Gutierrez said.

He plans to ensure that it doesn’t happen again.

In the state of Mississippi, if a server or bartender is caught selling alcohol to anyone under the age of 21, they will be fined anywhere between $500 to $1,000 for a first offense. If it continues, they could lose their permit, face possible jail time and pay a fine of $1,000 to $2,000, according to the release.

Representatives from Applebee’s declined to comment.