S.F. officials say this Tenderloin convenience store was selling meth behind the counter

In addition to selling sodas and candy, the operators of a Tenderloin convenience store have been quietly side-hustling as drug dealers, maintaining illegal marijuana, paraphernalia and meth behind the counter, San Francisco officials say.

The San Francisco City Attorney's Office filed a lawsuit Wednesday seeking to shutter the Corner Store at the intersection of Eddy and Leavenworth streets for one year, the latest in a string of bodegas targeted as part of the city's two-year crackdown on Tenderloin nuisance stores.

"The Corner Store didn't just promote drug activity - it became the drug dealer," City Attorney David Chiu said in a statement. "Families and minors rely on convenience stores, and we will not tolerate a store that sells drugs.

Officials say Corner Store and similar shops provide safe havens for criminals in the long-troubled Tenderloin neighborhood, the city's epicenter for drug crimes, overdoses and theft.

The Chronicle was not immediately able to reach Corner Store's owners for comment.

City officials say police responded to 12 incidents of theft, vandalism, fights and arrests in and around the Corner Store from March 2023 - just after its current owners began leasing the space - to November 2025.

After complaints, officials inspected the premises in November and seized nearly 50 grams of methamphetamine, 5 pounds of cannabis, a ghost gun and illegal tobacco products, according to the city attorney's office. They also seized items they said were used in the street drug trade, including small plastic baggies and glass pipes commonly used to smoke meth and cocaine.

The Corner Store marks the 13th business the city attorney's office has either sued or shut down, according to a spokesperson. Other stores targeted in the busts housed illegal slot machines and acted as trading posts for stolen goods such as luxury perfumes and Sephora beauty products.

Officials say Corner Store and its ilk provide safe havens for criminals in the long-troubled Tenderloin neighborhood, the city's epicenter for drug crimes, overdoses and theft. In a related move, city leaders have also placed a curfew on the remaining bodegas to discourage late-night congregating around the stores.

District 5 Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, who represents the Tenderloin and nearby areas, called the Corner Store lawsuit a "critical step toward shutting down the networks that fuel the drug trade."

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This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 10:32 AM.