Jury convicts Lanexa man guilty on embezzlement, attempted extortion charges

After a 12-hour jury trial, a Lanexa man was convicted of one charge of embezzlement and attempted extortion.

The jury rendered their verdict against W. Walker Ware IV during the June 14 trial in New Kent Circuit Court. Seven charges of obtaining money by false pretenses were tossed out by Judge B. Elliott Bondurant.

According to Commonwealth’s Attorney Linwood Gregory, Ware was a developer for a New Kent subdivision. In 2006, he approached four lot owners about fixing the roads in the subdivision. After an agreement was made, evidence presented revealed that minimal repairs occurred. On one occasion, Ware withdrew $3,000 from one of the accounts designated to assist with the repairs.

Ware, along with his mother, also owned six lots in the area. According to Gregory, the defendant tried to raise the charge per lot to assist with repairing the road from $200 to $5,000, offering a discount if a monthly installment was made. When one owner had money deducted from his account and had his check sent back, he approached Ware about the issue. However, the defendant threatened to file a lien if no payments were made.

The jury convicted Ware of the two crimes and fined him $2,500 on each time. The defendant will serve no active jail time.