The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department made two arrests in the southern part of the county Nov. 24 after receiving several complaints about drug activity at Larry’s Bar in Selz.

According to Sheriff Josh Siegler, deputies arrested Bobby Olson, 56, and Amber Lien, 31, both of whom were living at the bar.

In a written statement, Siegler said, “Those two people were found in possession of methamphetamine, methamphetamine paraphernalia, Psilocybin (Hallucinogenic Mushrooms), Marijuana, and Marijuana paraphernalia.”

Siegler said the owner of the Bar, Joe Goldade, 86, “was unaware of drug use on his premises.”

Siegler added, “Our office had multiple complaints of suspected drug use in Larry’s Bar. None of the complaints came from the bar owner, all were third party complaints. The complaints of suspected drug use dated as far back as May 2021.”

Siegler described the complaints as “anonymous,” however, he added, “the investigation was lengthy and fairly intensive to get enough information to justify a search warrant.” Siegler indicated he had spoken with Goldade multiple times about the complaints, however, Goldade “always report(ed) back to me that things are fine.”

At their regular meeting Dec. 7, the Pierce County Board of Commissioners met with Goldade to request that he re-apply for a beer and liquor license “since his previous application was not properly or completely filled out,” Siegler said. Goldade’s application came to the commission’s attention when he attempted to renew a current license due to expire at the end of 2021, according to Pierce County States Attorney Galen Mack.

The board of commissioners also voted to require Larry’s Bar to undergo and pass inspections by the North Dakota Department of Health and the North Dakota Fire Marshal. The commissioners also required Goldade to provide a list of bar employees and “a manager involved in day-to-day operations” including background checks for each one.

“These requests have been made to ensure that Mr. Goldade can successfully run a drug-free business that is safe for the public to patronize,” Siegler said.

Three days after the meeting, Mack said he had reviewed a more recent application submitted by Goldade indicating the bar had been purchased with a contract for deed 9 years ago by Joe Goldade’s son, Larry, who died in October 2021. However, Mack said he could not find any documentation indicating a transfer of the property from Denise Frye, who owned the bar before Larry Goldade, or to Joe Goldade after Larry’s death. Frye died in 2010.

“He has a lot of things to straighten out before he can get this going again,” Mack said of Goldade.