Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 6, 1995 TAG: 9504060054
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Ecstasy is a designer drug that became popular in the early 1980s for its mescaline-like highs.
The charges accuse Robert Monroe Burch, 28, of Roanoke, and Vincent Joseph Repede, 20, of Bent Mountain, of knowingly and intentionally possessing the controlled substance.
If convicted of the Class V felony, both men face a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison.
Police arrested Burch and Repede after Christiansburg and Montgomery County authorities responded to the party at Dominion Skating Center early on Nov. 20.
Raves are all-night parties that generally feature light shows and high-energy dance music. They are designed for young people 18 and over. Although the arrests did not occur during normal operating hours of the skating rink, almost anyone was allowed into the party after paying an admission, said Skip Schwab, an assistant commonwealth's attorney for Montgomery County.
Police said they made the arrests after a Christiansburg officer walking through the skating center off Roanoke Street noticed a man with a marijuana pipe. The officer confiscated the pipe and searched the man.
Aces, a Montgomery County drug dog, made a sweep of the parking lot and keyed on two cars.
Besides the controlled substance charge, police also charged Burch with misdemeanor marijuana possession and possession of a concealed weapon. During a search of his car, authorities found a switch-blade knife in Burch's duffel bag, Montgomery County authorities said.
In February, Burch was found guilty and fined $100. He has noted an appeal to Montgomery County Circuit Court. Burch pleaded guilty to the concealed weapons charge. Judge John Quigley found him guilty, but delayed imposing a sentence for 12 months.
Repede also was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession. He was found guilty and fined $100. He, too, has noted an appeal.
Police also arrested a third man, Norris Elroy Bramlett II, 20, of Roanoke, and charged him with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 18 in Montgomery County General District Court.
Other indictments include:
David Brian Gray, 40, of Rockville, Md.; one count of robbery. Gray is charged with robbing clerk Donna Lea Graves of $320 and $5 in merchandise while she was working at the Deli-Mart in Cambria on Sept. 13, 1992.
At a preliminary hearing earlier this year, Graves testified that Gray, whom she considered a friend, came into the store while she was stocking a cooler. When she came out of the cooler, Graves testified, Gray "told me to open the register and I wouldn't do it."
Graves testified Gray pushed her against a wall, then opened the register himself and took money. Graves said she believed Gray took some beer as well.
Gray is being held in the Montgomery County Jail.
by CNB