Manuel case going to grand jury
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ELKINS -- A grand jury will hear a case involving a Randolph County man accused of allegedly cashing an already deposited check that belonged to a deceased man.
Richard Allan Manuel, known as “Opie,” 53, is charged with one count of forging or uttering other writing, a felony. He is currently being held at the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $2,500 cash-only bond set by Randolph County Magistrate Benjamin Shepler.
Manuel appeared in Randolph County Magistrate Court Monday. During the preliminary hearing, Shepler found probable cause against Manuel, moving his case forward to be considered by a Randolph County grand jury.
At the hearing’s start, Assistant Prosecutor Leckta Poling called Michael Ellis, the owner of Papa John’s in Elkins, to testify before the court.
Ellis testified that, in October 2025, a check was made out to a Papa John’s employee named Darren Snyder, who endorsed the check before depositing it. On April 1, Ellis called 911 for a welfare check for Snyder and it was discovered that Snyder had passed away. Ellis said that, later on, he was informed by his accountant that Snyder’s October pay roll check had been deposited twice. The check was deposited again on April 21, after Snyder’s death, however, under Snyder’s endorsement, the check now said "pay to the order of Richard A. Manuel." Ellis said he did not know Manuel and that Manuel had never worked for him.
During cross-examination, Manuel’s attorney, Gregory Tingler, asked Ellis is he knew whether the check was deposited by Snyder in October electronically or in person. Ellis said he did not know how Snyder deposited the check. Ellis also stated that he only knew Manuel’s name from the signature on the check deposited in April.
Poling then called Sgt. K. Shiflett with the Elkins Police Department, the arresting officer in the case, to testify.
Shiflett told the court he had been informed of the situation by Ellis and had received a copy of both checks. Shiflett said he was made aware that Manuel opened a bank account around the time the check was deposited a second time, but he was waiting for more information from Huntington Bank in order to open a disc regarding the bank account’s records.
Snyder’s landlord had told Shifflet that, while they did not see any check while cleaning out Snyder’s apartment, it was possible the check did end up in the dumpster and that’s how it was accessed. Shiflett added that he was unsure where Manuel lives and that he did not know if Snyder and Manuel knew each other.
In cross-examination, Tingler questioned if Shiflett knew which bank Manuel opened an account with. Shiflett said he believed it to be with Huntington, but he did not know which bank location. Tingler also questioned who witnessed Manuel opening the account, to which Shiflett said the teller who possibly assisted him was no longer at the bank, and that another teller recalls seeing Manuel at the bank that day. It was also mentioned that the second instance of the check had been put on hold and no money had been received.
During a back and forth of follow-up questions from Poling and Tingler, Shiflett explained that, though Manuel did not receive any money, even attempting to do so counted as uttering. He also noted that he was uncertain if the check used to open the bank account was Snyder’s and he would not know until he could access the bank records.
While Poling asked the court to find probable cause based on the testimony given during the hearing, Tingler argued that probable cause could not be found as the evidence against Manuel was insufficient and less than conclusive, due to there being no proper witnesses.
Before Shepler found probable cause against Manuel, Tingler made a motion to modify Manuel’s bond from cash-only to personal recognizance. He argued that Manuel was not a flight risk. Poling argued, however, that modifying the bond would not be appropriate under the circumstances. Shepler said Maneul’s current bond was more than fair and denied Tingler’s motion.
Manuel has a history of being charged with criminal activity in Randolph County.
In February 2025, Manuel was charged with one count of threats of terrorist acts, a felony, after the Randolph County Sheriff's Department was contacted by former Elkins Police Chief Travis Bennett in regard to Manuel "making threats to kill him, Mayor Jerry Marco, and shoot up Tygart Valley Regional Jail." During a hearing for this charge in Randolph County Magistrate Court in June 2025, Manuel agreed to plead guilty or no contest to two counts of obstructing law-enforcement, probation, parole, court security, corrections officer with threats of harm, both misdemeanors.
Prior to the plea, in May 2025, Manuel appeared before Randolph County Circuit Court Judge David Wilmoth for a status hearing regarding a competency evaluation that was previously requested for Manuel. The results of the evaluation showed that Manuel was "competent and criminally responsible" for his actions, Wilmoth said.
In April 2023, Manuel was charged with felony destruction of property after allegedly throwing a rock through the front glass doors of the Tygart Valley Regional Jail in broad daylight, causing damage.
Later, in November 2023, Manuel was charged with petit larceny and obstructing an officer after allegedly stealing a bicycle from the Elkins Wal-Mart and fleeing from police.