On Sept. 27, New Hampshire Liquor Commission officers arrested a member of the Class of 2027 at Han Fusion — a Chinese, Japanese and Thai fusion restaurant in downtown Hanover — after he presented them with fake identification.
Two Liquor Commission officers entered the restaurant around 9:30 p.m. and began checking the IDs of restaurant patrons whose ages looked “questionable,” according to Han Fusion owner Tom Liang. The officers handcuffed one student — who was with a group of “seven or eight people” who were served alcohol — and took him out of the restaurant, Liang said. Liang was later told by the officers that the student had presented a fake ID to them, he said.
“I don’t think [the officers saw] him actually drinking alcohol because they were asking me if there’s any camera that can show … the time period [the group was there],” Liang said.
According to Liang, the server responsible for the group — who was hired recently — did not check the group’s IDs before serving the table alcohol. Liang said he told the officers that the server — who was told to check IDs before serving alcohol — was “undertrained.”
“It was actually his third day,” Liang said. “He actually has to pay attention [to] not only checking [IDs, but also] 100 million other things that we have tossed on him.”
The server declined to comment.
Liang said Han Fusion’s liquor license has not been revoked, but he expects to receive a fine for the incident. He added that, prior to this incident, Liquor Commission officers had never entered one of his restaurants and checked IDs in his “nearly 30 years” in the restaurant business.
Montagne Powers — a communications firm that represents the Liquor Commission — partner E.J. Powers wrote in an email statement to The Dartmouth that the Liquor Commission is “statutorily required” to inspect establishments “once a year.”
According to New Hampshire’s statutes on alcoholic beverages, an individual who possesses a fake ID can be found guilty of a misdemeanor. Powers wrote that the student faces a fine of “up to $1,200 if found guilty” — the maximum fine for a Class B misdemeanor.
The Hanover Police Department was not involved in the arrest, Lieutenant Michael Schibuola wrote in an email statement to The Dartmouth. However, the department reaches out to the Liquor Commission “on occasion when issues come up,” including when the department receives “information that a business is not properly checking IDs for the sale of alcohol,” Schibuola wrote.
Students have had inconsistent experiences with carding at Han Fusion. A member of the Class of 2025 — who requested anonymity to speak candidly about her experience — said Han Fusion had previously failed to check her ID. The student, who was not present the night of the arrest, said her ID was not checked when her group ordered a scorpion bowl — an alcoholic beverage served in a large ceramic bowl meant for sharing — last winter when she was underage. She added that the server checked the IDs of “some people” in her group but not hers.
However, Han Fusion patron James Quirk ’25 — who was not present the night of the arrest — said his ID has been checked “every single time” he has purchased alcoholic drinks at the restaurant. He added that he has found the servers to be “responsible” with checking IDs of all members of a group who do not “clearly” look older than 21.
“I remember going with a friend of mine who tried to get away without [his ID and] said that he left his ID at home,” Quirk said. “[The server] said, ‘Sorry, but [I] can’t help you.’”
The arrested member of the Class of 2027 declined to comment.
James Quirk ’25 is a former news writer for The Dartmouth. He was not involved in the writing or production of this article.
Update Appended (Oct. 21, 9:51 p.m.): The article has been updated to include a statement from Montagne Powers partner E.J. Powers.
