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Campus Steaks Part-Owner Joe Ford Pleads Guilty To 74 Felony Counts

Joe Ford, a part-owner of State College’s Campus Steaks restaurant, pled guilty on Monday, January 13, to 74 felony counts of deceptive business practices and one misdemeanor for writing bad checks in Montgomery County. Ford will pay around $500,000 in restitution and will face further sentencing in April.

Ford’s case first became public in February 2023 after he was charged with 320 felony counts, specifically, 64 counts each of theft by deception, receiving stolen property, deceptive business practices, false statements to induce agreement for home improvement, and theft by unlawful taking. Ford was arrested on January 20, 2023.

Prosecutors said Ford and his business, 1st Call Electric LLC, took deposits from almost 64 homeowners for the purchase of a home backup generator and its installation. Ford never followed through on those deposits. The total alleged theft totaled $474,185.

Thirty-nine of the 75 counts hold a maximum penalty of seven years of jail time. However, since 35 of the 74 victims were over the age of 60, the penalty for those counts carries a maximum sentence of 10 years of jail time. The penalty for the misdemeanor is a total of five years.

Ford has been a public supporter of Penn State football’s NIL efforts, bringing some of the team’s players, including tight end Tyler Warren, defensive tackle Zane Durant, former Penn State quarterback Beau Pribula, punter Riley Thompson, and linebacker Dom DeLuca, into the restaurant for cup signings.

Ford was prosecuted, in part, by Tanner Beck, a Penn State alum who gained notoriety around campus for his impressive afro. Unfortunately, Beck later shaved down the afro as he entered the professional world and began an internship in Dauphin County.

Ford told StateCollege.com that the plea won’t impact Campus Steaks and blamed COVID-19 for the issues that led to the charges.

“I was in business for 31 years and we’re rated a five-star electrical contractor for all those years,” Ford said. “COVID beat us up with the generators, with the supply chain and everything like that. We couldn’t keep up on jobs obviously with lack of materials and supplies. I talked to a lawyer and he gave me bad advice. He told me to shut down. We shut down, and, obviously, we didn’t do it the right way. “

There’s still some hope for Campus Steaks’ fans after Ford’s plea, though: the Eagles are due for a playoff run.

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About the Author

Joe Lister

Joe is a senior journalism major at Penn State and Onward State's managing editor. He writes about everything Penn State and is single-handedly responsible for the 2017 Rose Bowl. If you see him at Cafe 210, please buy him a Miami pitcher. For dumb stuff, follow him on Twitter (iamjoelister). For serious stuff, email him ([email protected]). To tell him your deepest secrets, find him on Signal (iamjoelister.93).

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