Former Clemson athletics employee now faces a felony theft charge

Less than a week after a former Clemson University athletics department employee was arrested on a misdemeanor theft charge, he now faces a felony charge in connection with missing university property, court records show.

John Samuel Blackman, of Central, was arrested Tuesday by Clemson University police on a charge of grand larceny more than $2,000 but less than $10,000, according to Pickens County online court records.

Blackman, who was a longtime employee of the sports information office, is prohibited from returning to the Clemson campus while his charges are pending except to come to court, according to bond conditions listed in the Pickens County public index.

The grand larceny charge, which is a felony, carries up to five years in prison, under South Carolina law.

On July 12, university employee Richard Bagby, who is Clemson’s Assistant AD for video and technology, noticed that video recording equipment worth approximately $3,855 was missing from a storage room at the Jervey Athletic Center, according to records obtained from the Clemson University Police Department.

Bagby suspected that Blackman was responsible for the missing equipment after seeing similar items for sale on an e-Bay account containing part of Blackman’s last name, according to the report.

Then on Aug. 7, at around 11:30 p.m., Blackman was seen on video removing video equipment valued at $295 from the storage room, according to an arrest warrant. Blackman took the equipment and concealed it under his shirt, according to the report.

The incident was recorded on a covert video recording device that had been placed in the room due to recurring thefts, the report states.

Blackman was released from jail Tuesday on a personal recognizance bond, court records show.

He worked for Clemson from 1987 until he retired on June 30, Joe Galbraith, associate director for athletic communications, told The State on Sunday.

The university announced Friday that Blackman was arrested on a misdemeanor larceny charge after a university investigation that was launched last month when items were reported missing by members of the athletics department. State Law Enforcement Division agents are assisting in the ongoing investigation.

This story was originally published August 14, 2018 at 2:49 PM.