
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, December 15, 1994                   TAG: 9412150032
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: New River Valley bureau
DATELINE: RADFORD                                LENGTH: Short

RADFORD POLICE CHARGE 3 TEENS

City police have charged three Alexandria teen-agers with grand larceny after a Radford merchant reported the trio used a stolen credit card to buy more than $600 in merchandise Sunday.

When police stopped the car they were traveling in, they also recovered a stolen .22-caliber handgun, said Capt. Gary Harmon.

Employees at Felix Books and Gifts on Tyler Avenue called police after a check of the credit card revealed it was stolen. But by the time employees discovered it was stolen, the people had already loaded the purchases in a car and left.

Clothing, posters and artists' pens were among the items bought with the stolen card.

Harmon said the trio was in Radford to visit high school friends. The handgun belonged to a local resident who didn't realize the gun was missing.

Charged were:

Dereck G. Roop, 18, two counts of grand larceny. One of the charges was for the merchandise; the other for the gun.

A 17-year-old girl, two counts of credit-card fraud, one count of grand larceny and one count of conspiracy to commit credit-card fraud.

A second 17-year old girl, one count of grand larceny.

by CNB