61-year-old Ricky L. Thompson, a former Ashland University Business Office employee, was arrested by Mansfield Police early Friday and charged with forgery.

According to the Mansfield Police report filed on Sept. 21, officers pulled over Thompson’s gray 2013 Toyota truck after they saw it leaving a “high drug area” with expired license plates around 2:45 a.m. on the 400 block of Burns Street.

The truck was being driven by Charlie A. Bettis, of Mansfield who was arrested for driving with a suspended license. Another passenger, Billie Jo Hinds of Ashland, was also arrested as she had two active warrants for her arrest out of the Mansfield Police Department.

The report states that when the police approached the vehicle, “The three occupants appeared to be moving around excessively in the cab of the vehicle. Occupant two then exited the vehicle and appeared to be attempting to flee on foot. Occupant two was instructed to stop and get back inside the vehicle to which she complied. Upon approaching the vehicle all occupants appeared overly nervous and were all sweating profusely.”

According to the report, police patted Thompson down, where officers discovered $100 bills that appeared to be counterfeit. Police believed Thompson also to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

The report states that Hinds was asked to remove a brown napkin from her clothing, which would reveal what was believed to be crack cocaine by the police. This was later confirmed by Hinds that it was indeed the drug, but she refused to take ownership.

The report also said that, “Inside the bed of the truck another small compartment was located and checked at which time an eyeglass case was located which contained various items of drug paraphernalia and syringes.”

When police executed a search of Thompson’s vehicle, three money bags were found which totaled $36,308.52 of cash and checks with receipts returning to Ashland University.

Bettis told the police that the syringes, crack pipes and Chore Boy; a copper pad used as a part of a crack cocaine pipe, was his.

According to the police report, Thompson told the police that he worked for AU as the treasurer and was supposed to deposit the money in the bank but had yet to do so. He could not provide proof of employment with the University when asked to do so.

Ashland University spokesman Steve Hannan, the Director of Public Relations, provided the following statement regarding the arrest:

“On September 21, 2018, Ashland University was made aware of the arrest of one of its employees on charges of forgery. Various media outlets have reported that this individual identified himself as the University’s “Treasurer.” While this individual was employed in Ashland University’s Business Office, he did not have the title of Treasurer. The individual identified is no longer employed with Ashland University, and in respecting ongoing criminal and internal investigations, the University will not comment further on the matter.”