MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — The case of a now-former Berkeley County custodian who was discovered hiding inside the closet of a girls’ locker room by more than a dozen high school basketball players has been bound over to circuit court.
During a preliminary hearing Monday, Berkeley County Magistrate Sandra Hamilton also denied the defense attorney’s request to reduce the bond or the charges for William Howard Shoup, 25, who faces 13 felony charges related to the attempt to film sexually explicit conduct of minors.
Shoup also faces 14 misdemeanor charges related to the invasion of privacy and two misdemeanor counts of possession of a weapon on school grounds.
Called to the stand was Martinsburg Police Detective Engle, who relayed the criminal complaint stemming from the Feb. 12 incident at Martinsburg High School.
Engle testified that 13 members of the Hedgesville High School girls’ basketball team and their coach were in the locker room at Martinsburg the evening of a game between Hedgesville and Martinsburg.
One of the students, identified only by her initials, told police she noticed a closet door slightly cracked open inside the locker room. Feeling uneasy, she opened the door and found Shoup inside the closet holding a cell phone. He pulled the door shut “in an apparent attempt to conceal himself,” according to the criminal complaint.
He reportedly told the girls that he had been ‘trapped’ inside the closet.
All 13 girls and their coach gave consistent statements to police on scene, saying they had been in various stages of undress, that they did not know Shoup was in the closet, and they did not consent to being watched or recorded.
School security footage showed Shoup entering and exiting the locker room area. Detective Engle said Shoup had been working at the school for a year and a half and would have known it was a girls’ locker room.
As to Shoup’s statement to police that he heard the girls outside and hid, Detective Engle pointed out there was a larger closet in the locker room but that Shoup had chosen to hide in a smaller closet that “had a direct line of sight to the girls.”
Shoup admitted to MPD that he was curious about seeing the girls, according to Detective Engle.
In the criminal report, Detective Engle wrote, “At the time he was discovered, Shoup was holding his cellular phone in a manner consistent with filming or preparing to record. While he denied actually recording the girls, he had positioned himself inside a concealed location with a direct line of sight to minors who were undressing, while holding a recording device. Based on his actions, statements, and positioning, I believe he either deleted any recording made or was interrupted before he could complete recording.”
“Shoup stated he has a learning disability,” wrote Detective Engle, “however, he was enrolled in college courses and clearly articulated that he knew his conduct was wrong. His statements demonstrate awareness and intent.”
Defense Attorney Matthew Yanni said just because Shoup was holding a phone a certain way did not guarantee he was actively filming. He asked Detective Engle if any of the girls were engaged in sexual activity, to which the detective said, “No.”
Detective Engle said MPD would know more about what images were on Shoup’s phone once the phone was examined. He served a warrant regarding the iPhone following the court proceedings.
During his testimony, Detective Engle said most of the youngsters were wearing sports bras and spandex. Yanni questioned whether those ‘various states of undress’ amounted to anything sexually explicit.
The case now moves on to circuit court. Magistrate Hamilton refused the defense request to downgrade the charges or decrease the bail amount of $1.3 million.
Berkeley County Schools Superintendent Dr. Ryan Saxe said on Monday’s Panhandle Live that while investigators believe this is an isolated incident, he encourages anyone with with information to reach out to law enforcement.
In a letter to families at the time, Dr. Saxe said, “Berkeley County Schools is cooperating fully with law enforcement as the investigation continues. Additionally, Mr. Shoup will not be returning to the school or to Berkeley County Schools.”
The district is not releasing further information at this time, according to the superintendent. “We understand that this situation may raise serious concerns within our school community. While we recognize the desire for additional information, we are unable to share further details at this time in order to protect privacy and preserve the integrity of the investigation. We can share that our district follows a comprehensive hiring process that includes background checks for all employees.”
Saxe went on to say, “We deeply regret that this incident occurred and understand the fear, stress, and concern this may cause for our students, families, and staff. Our thoughts are with the students and teams involved, and support services have been initiated for any students who may need assistance as they work through the emotional impact of this incident.”
The criminal complaint reveals that the two weapons possession charges stem from a folding knife found in Shoup’s right front pants pocket and a fixed-blade knife located inside Shoup’s lunch box. Both knives were in his possession while he was on the grounds of Martinsburg High School.