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The Rice Thresher
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by Olivia Allison Thresher editorial staff University Police arrested a man with warrants in four states - including one for a felony in Florida - at the Campus Store Wednesday. Enoch Eugene McClain, 48, attempted to steal four books about an hour before the store closed at 5 p.m. Lt. Dianna Marshall said Campus Store Manager Michelle Jones Vanderwater notified police at about 2:45 p.m. that a man claiming to belong to a Christian organization had called and said he had bought books and wanted to return them. He then asked questions about the store, such as when the bookstore closed and the name of the manager. McClain came to the store 45 minutes later, and Vanderwater suspected that he had been the caller. McClain is a black male, 5 feet 4 inches tall with dark skin. Vanderwater called police and told them that McClain was still in the store. When police arrived, he had four books in his possession, which police suspect he was attempting to steal. Police took McClain to the University Police station. Marshall said this type of theft is common in the bookstore. "Periodically, we get reports of these people who come into the bookstore and go downstairs and pick up books, put them in a bag, and then they come upstairs and they want to return these books for cash," Marshall said. Sgt. Steve Reiter said Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and Arizona have warrants for McClain's arrest on charges that include possession of possible drug paraphernalia, obtaining property by false pretenses and scheme to defraud. "This guy is amazing," Reiter said. "He is a major con artist." Reiter said police records listed 14 aliases, eight different dates of birth and four social security numbers for McClain. For a Class B misdemeanor such as attempted theft of the books, McClain could be given a fine of up to $2,000 and up to 180 days in Harris County Jail. Reiter said because of McClain's previous criminal record, he will probably receive the maximum sentence. After McClain has served his time in Harris County Jail, he will be extradited to Florida, where he will go on trial for scheme to defraud, a felony charge. If McClain is convicted of this charge, he will be sentenced to at least several years in jail and will not be eligible for bond, Reiter said. Reiter said after McClain gets out of jail in Florida, he will probably be extradited to any of the other states that choose to prosecute him. Marshall said incidents like this occur at the bookstore about once every semester. "I think it probably happens more even than what we know or how often we're able to catch them," Marshall said. Marshall said that because Vanderwater alerted the police after the first call, police were able to catch McClain more easily. "We can't praise them enough because they were sharp enough to realize that there was something wrong with the initial call, ... and so we were on alert already."
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