Apr. 24—EAU CLAIRE — The owner of a shop located inside Banbury Place will spend three years in prison for dealing marijuana from his business.

A sting operation using confidential informants for local law enforcement agencies caught the man selling marijuana products from his business, The Heady Hut, police said.

Samuel J. Pastorello, 25, 920 Summer St., pleaded guilty Monday in Eau Claire County Court to felony counts of marijuana delivery and possession of marijuana with intent to deliver.

Felony counts of second-offense possession of cocaine and maintaining a drug trafficking place, and a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia were dismissed but considered at sentencing by Judge Michael Schumacher.

Schumacher ordered Pastorello to spend three years on extended supervision following his release from prison.

As conditions of supervision, Pastorello must maintain absolute sobriety and undergo an alcohol and drug assessment and any other recommended programming or treatment. He also cannot have contact with known drug dealers or users.

Pastorello was fined $1,036.

According to the criminal complaint:

In October, two informants told a Chippewa County Sheriff's Office investigator that an Eau Claire tobacco shop owner was selling marijuana products to them.

The informants told the investigator that they had bought THC wax and raw marijuana from the shopkeeper for a couple of months. For each drug buy, they would go to the shop during business hours, wait for customers to leave, the owner would lock the door and they would conduct business.

The informants recalled buying up to a half-pound of raw marijuana from the store owner.

Local law enforcement set up a controlled buy using the informants on Nov. 10 at The Heady Hut. Prior to entering the store, the informants were searched, fitted with recording devices and given $1,000 in pre-recorded cash to buy the drugs.

After making the deal, the informants returned with a quarter-pound of marijuana and a quarter-pound of THC wax. Both of the products tested positive for the presence of marijuana. Investigators reviewed video footage of the transaction and confirmed the informants bought the drugs from Pastorello inside The Heady Hut.

That same day the investigators executed a search warrant at the shop. Inside the store, they found about 866 grams of raw marijuana, 129 grams of THC butter, 248 grams of THC wax and three THC vape cartridges. Those marijuana products were found inside a filing cabinet, in backpacks and in a box behind the sales counter.

U.S. currency matching the money given to the confidential informants was found in Pastorello's pocket and in the cash register.

On a desk, investigators found a rolled $1 bill with cocaine residue on it.

Drug paraphernalia with marijuana residue on it was also found inside the store.