CHAMP

BUCKHANNON — An Upshur County man faces two felony charges after allegedly stealing over $18,000 from Jeanie’s Hot Spot.

James William Champ, 48, is charged with one count of grand larceny and one count of entry into a building other than a dwelling, both felonies. He is currently being held at the North Central Regional Jail on a $100,000 cash-only bond.

According to the criminal complaint filed by Patrolman Cole Bender with the Buckhannon City Police Department, on June 22, Bender responded to Jeanie’s Hot Spot in Buckhannon in reference to a burglary.

Upon arrival, Bender spoke to the manager and an employee who had closed the establishment the night before, the complaint states. They both reported to Bender that, after closing, someone had entered the business and stolen $18,202 from the safe.

Bender was provided video footage which showed the employee leaving Jeanie’s Hot Spot at approximately 2:42 a.m. and getting into the back passenger side of a vehicle, the complaint states. The employee advised who picked her up and when Bender contacted the driver, she confirmed that she and her husband had picked up the employee from the work. The husband was later identified as Champ.

The video also showed a man entering the front door of Jeanie’s Hot Spot at approximately 3:39 a.m., the complaint states. Bender writes that it would appear the man had a key to the front door. When the man entered, the footage showed him going straight for the alarm system and entering the code to disarm it. The man then went directly to the safe, entering the combination and taking the money from inside. He is then seen leaving the establishment and walking south on North Locust.

The footage showed that the man was wearing a single glove, a wrist watch on his left arm, a gray baseball cap and a green bandana to cover his face, the complaint states. When the man bent over, the footage showed that he has “reddish-gray” facial hair under the bandana, as well as a tattoo on his neck. As he stood up again and turned around, the footage showed him having long hair poking out of the sides of the baseball cap.

Bender writes that he was able to obtain footage from Traders Alley in Buckhannon, which showed the man walking north to Main Street at approximately 3:26 a.m. The man appeared to be holding a cellular device that was turned on. Bender also obtained footage from Moon Flower Hemp on East Main Street that showed the man walking to North Spring Street at approximately 3:32 a.m.

Using social media, Bender was able to locate photos of Champ, which allegedly show him having long “reddish-gray” hair, the complaint states. Bender was also able to locate a previous mugshot for Champ which reportedly shows him having a tattoo that matches the one from the video footage from Jeanie’s Hot Spot.

Bender was provided even more footage from Community Care’s West Main Street location, as well as the company’s North Locust location, the complaint states. Both videos show the same man from the Jeanie’s Hot Spot footage without the green bandana, but with the same hat. Bender writes that the man in these videos allegedly appears to be Champ. In the video from East Main Street, Champ is reportedly seen walking towards Jeanie’s Hot Spot wearing a backpack. However, during the theft itself, the man in the Jeanie’s Hot Spot footage is not wearing a backpack until it is seen again on his person in the Community Care footage.

“While Mr. Champ appeared to be wearing different clothes while committing the theft, the hat, watch and boots appear to be the same,” Bender wrote in the criminal complaint against Champ. “The backpack that Champ is wearing could easily carry and conceal a different shirt and pants.”

A plea hearing for Champ has been scheduled for July 7 in Upshur County Magistrate Court.