Wytheville man charged with felonies

By WAYNE QUESENBERRY/Staff

A Wytheville man was arrested Monday after allegedly holding people against their will at a Justus-Mills Road residence in Wytheville, according to the Wythe County Sheriff’s Office. Eric Leslie Newman, 35, of Wytheville, was charged with felony abduction, felony communicate a threat to destroy a means of transportation, misdemeanor assault of a household member and misdemeanor destruction of property.
Chief Deputy Keith Dunagan reported deputies responded to a 911 call that Newman was holding people against their will. Deputies, he said, had a warrant issued on Jan. 13 for Newman’s arrest for disorderly conduct.
After officers surrounded the residence, Dunagan stated, Newman surrendered without incident. He is being held without bond at the New River Valley Regional Jail in Dublin, according to the chief deputy.
In another case, the Sheriff’s Office is investigating the reported theft of a stainless steel restaurant style table from the residence of Troy Lawson on Topaz Drive in the eastern end of the county. Lawson told officers the table was taken between midnight and 6 p.m. on July 11.
Lawson described the table as 8 feet long with two shelves, three sides, electric outlets on top, an odd leg and one side of galvanized steel. He said it weighs about 300 lbs. and is valued at $1,300.
In another incident, officers are looking into the passing of seven bad checks totaling $3,998 at the Wilco-Hess Truck Stop on East Lee Highway. They were notified of the incident by manager Ronnie Coleman at 12:30 p.m. on July 11.
The investigation into the allegation, Dunagan said, has identified a possible suspect.
In an unrelated case, Linda Payne Burkholder, 47, of Ivanhoe, has been charged with two counts of felony forgery and two counts of felony uttering forged checks. She was arrested July 9.
According to Dunagan, his office received a complaint that forged checks had been passed at the Wytheville Go Mart. The investigation revealed that two checks totaling $48.42 drawn on the account of a Woodlawn man had been cashed by a female.
Evidence, Dunagan stated, led to the arrest of Burkholder.
Wayne Quesenberry can be reached at 228-6611 or .