A Darien man who was arrested on similar charges twice before is accused of selling drugs, alcohol and tobacco to children as young as 12 years old. He was previously accused of giving cocaine to children as young as 14 and doing drugs with them at his home.
Police said they took 51-year-old Mark Yarish into custody on Friday at Mohegan Sun Casino.
According to police, Yarish sold marijuana, alcohol and tobacco products to children as young as 12 on a daily basis from December 2016 until he was arrested on Sept. 5.
Police started investigating Darien in July and said he was accused of introducing juveniles to narcotics. Detectives were able to determine that Yarish provided and used cocaine with juveniles, as young as 14, while in his home, according to police.
In July, police said they had received information that a local man was providing illicit substances to minors in and around Darien and they had evidence that Yarish was taking orders for alcohol by text, buying it at local establishments, delivering it to teens and selling it at “a substantial markup over cost.”
The warrant Yarish was arrested on Sept. 1 resulted from the investigation into Yarish following the arrest in July, police said.
As the investigation continued, police said detectives found more evidence and determined Yarish was conducting these transactions on an almost daily basis since December 2016. These transactions were conducted via text messages and phone calls followed by Yarish delivering the products to the juveniles at a substantial markup over cost.
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Yarish has been charged with six counts of risk of injury to a minor and one count of second-degree reckless endangerment.
The Department of Children and Families has been working with police.
