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A South Berkeley liquor store has lost its license to sell alcohol for 20 days after an employee there bought purportedly stolen cellphones from an undercover agent, a state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control spokesman said today. 

ABC started a month-long investigation into M&H Market & Liquor at 3198 Adeline St., a corner store near the Ashby BART station, after receiving complaints that the store had been accepting stolen goods, ABC spokesman John Carr said. 

During the investigation, an undercover ABC agent sold several purportedly stolen iPhones to an employee at the store, Carr said. 

The ABC then filed an accusation against the store and the employee was arrested by Berkeley police, Carr said. ABC agents posted a notice at the store Thursday that its liquor license has been suspended for 20 days. 

For stores selling alcohol, "there's an expectation that they're going to be compliant with the law," Carr said. 

Once the 20-day suspension is up, the store will be on probation for the next three years and any similar violation could result in the revocation of its license, Carr said.