ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, October 10, 1996 TAG: 9610100063
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG
SOURCE: LISA K. GARCIA STAFF WRITER
Junior wide receiver Walter Ford was dismissed from the Virginia Tech football team Wednesday after he and a Blacksburg woman were involved in an alleged shoplifting incident this past week.
Ford, a backup wideout and special-teams player, paid 78 cents to buy $190 worth of merchandise from the University Bookstore located on campus with the help of a cashier, according to Virginia Tech Police reports.
Beamer confirmed Wednesday afternoon that Ford had been dropped from the squad because of the incident, which occurred Oct.3. Beamer declined to comment further.
Another Tech player, junior tailback Marcus Parker, was charged with and pleaded no contest to shoplifting in July. But Parker wasn't kicked off the team. Instead, the former Salem High School star received a suspension (covering four games) that was lifted by Beamer on Monday.
Timing evidently played a major part in Ford's dismissal. Since Parker's incident, several players have said publicly that Beamer told the team that ``anybody else who got in trouble was gone.''
Ford, in his first year at Tech after transferring from Butler (Kan.) Community College, played sparingly in all of the Hokies' four games to date. The 20-year-old Hampton native had one pass reception for 12 yards. He returned five kickoffs for 84 yards and four punts for 0 yards.
A book store manager said Ford stood at the cashier's register Oct.3 while Charlotte Champaco charged him pennies for items such as sweat shirts and baseball caps that usually cost from $5 to $50.
The manager, who declined to give his name, said he happened to be walking by as Champaco completed the transaction. As the manager passed the register, he said he saw the prices being charged and the items on the counter.
The manager said he then watched Ford hand $2 to the cashier - who lives in Blacksburg but is not a student - and get change back before walking toward the door with two full bags.
When he stopped Ford at the door and asked to see the receipt, the manager said, Ford offered no resistance. The receipt total was 78 cents, he said. The manager then reported the incident to the campus police.
Virginia Tech Police Chief Mike Jones said the actual retail cost of the merchandise totaled $190, $10 less than the $200 threshold for a charge of grand larceny. An officer arrested Ford and Champaco on Monday on the shoplifting charge. Shoplifting is considered petit larceny - a misdemeanor that carries a maximum of 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine.
The book store manager said he immediately fired Champaco, who, when confronted, tried to take the blame for Ford. Champaco had worked at the book store since early September. She said Ford had no knowledge of what was going on, but Ford admitted he did, the manager said.
Champaco is the girlfriend of one of Ford's friends, the manager said.
No one had been caught shoplifting at the store in the past two years, the manager of seven years said. ``It's disturbing,'' he said. ``I was more concerned with her than him.''
Ford and Champaco are scheduled to be arraigned Oct.16 in Blacksburg General District Court, Jones said.
Meanwhile, two more football players recently were convicted of charges that resulted in one-game suspensions.
Nathaniel ``Nat'' Williams, a redshirt freshman defensive tackle from Jacksonville, Fla., and Jason Berish, a redshirt sophomore defensive end from McMurray, Pa., were suspended for the Rutgers game Sept.21 by Beamer.
Williams apparently was out celebrating his 20th birthday on June 28 when he was arrested for driving under the influence on U.S. 460, according to court records.
Lt. Bruce Bradbery of the Blacksburg Police said the arrest report states Williams had a 0.13 blood-alcohol concentration when he was arrested. The legal limit in Virginia is 0.08.
When an officer pulled Williams over, Williams stopped his car in the middle of the Prices Fork ramp. He then gave the officer a driver's license that did not belong to him with a photo that did not look like him. When the officer asked Williams the name on the license, Williams could not tell him the correct name.
Williams was convicted Sept.18 for DUI and for presenting an operator's license that was not his. He must attend a state-run alcohol safety program, which costs $300, and pay $149 in court costs; and his driver's license was suspended for one year.
Berish was convicted of possession of a fake identification after he was stopped for speeding Aug.23.
He was convicted Sept.11 and paid a $250 fine, according to court records.
Staff writer Randy King contributed information to this story.
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