Detectives Shut Down and Padlock Buchanan Street Market Under State Nuisance Law

After a prolonged disruption of quality of life on Buchanan Street due to drug deals, gunshots, drunkenness and fighting at and around Star Market, 1613 Buchanan Street, detectives this morning took action to close and padlock the business.

Star Market is the subject of a public nuisance temporary injunction and padlocking order issued under seal Friday by Criminal Court Judge Steve Dozier. The District Attorney’s Office partnered with the MNPD to request the court order. Specialized Investigations Division detectives, assisted by officers from SWAT, the North and West Precincts, the Fraud and Pawn Units, and TBI HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas) members, arrived at the property during the 6 a.m. hour today to initiate the closure and padlocking process. The market will remain shut down pending a hearing before Judge Dozier on Thursday.

“This extreme action is not taken lightly, but is absolutely necessary as we work to restore peace and quiet in this neighborhood as well as reduce the drain on North Precinct resources being caused by this property,” Chief John Drake said. “Enough is enough.”

The operators of Star Market, Bolis Boktor, 44, Basem Farag, 43, and Atef Abdelmaseh, 51, are alleged to have shown a reckless disregard and deliberate indifference to the peace of the neighborhood, the rights of adjacent property owners, and the safety of the public. The MNPD has documented that patrons, along with those hanging out on the property and around the store, are regularly involved in fighting, shootings, assaults, drug use and other criminal activities, including blocking the flow of traffic from neighboring businesses, criminal trespassing, thefts and vandalism of other properties. The nuisance activities regularly occur after dark, but frequently during the daytime as well.

In August 2022, representatives of the MNPD and the District Attorney’s Office met with the market’s operators. They were made aware of the activity occurring at and around the store and promised they would take steps to remedy being a nuisance. However, complaints from neighbors and calls to the police department have continued. No lesser amounts of drug use, drunkenness, fighting and gun violence have been observed since August 2022, leading to more than 60 documented police responses and interventions since that time.

An affidavit from Detective Mike Collazo, submitted to the court on Friday, details 424 instances of police response to the Star Market between January 1, 2019 and May 31, 2024.

Simultaneous to today’s padlocking of the Star Market, MNPD detectives from the Fraud and Pawn Units are executing a search warrant at F & B Mart, 3900 Clarksville Pike, which is owned by Boktor and Farag. An investigation of the market begun in late 2023 revealed that the men, on multiple occasions, would willingly buy merchandise represented to them as stolen for pennies on the dollar, and then resell the items. Among the products they would buy: cigarettes, medical thermometers, Tylenol, Advil, batteries, Prilosec, dishwashing detergent, Tide Pods, Clorox wipes, candy bars, Rogaine, and many others. The items, valued at $10,999.28, were provided to the police department by local retailers to further the investigation. They were sold for $890.

Such fencing operations create a market for shoplifters and organized retail thieves, ultimately raising the cost of groceries and household goods for consumers.

Boktor and Farag were arrested this morning on an indictment charging each of them with money laundering, organized retail crime, and attempted theft of property.