News Article

ABC agents hold spirited jobs

WILLIAMSBURG -- Shortly after 10 p.m. on a recent Friday, John Hughes strode into C.J.'s House of Jazz Restaurant and quizzed owner Curtis Mangrum:

How much for the buffet? A bottle of Budweiser? A double-shot of Jack Daniels? With tax?

Not that Hughes was hungry - or thirsty.

Instead, he'd dropped by the Williamsburg restaurant to inspect pricing, food inventory and other business practices as part of his job as a special agent with the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.

Hughes and the department's other 98 special agents are sworn state police officers with full arrest powers.

But rather than patrolling roads or responding to dispatches, these officers enforce the state's many alcohol-related laws by inspecting restaurants, investigating alcohol-related complaints, and sifting through stacks of financial records in administrative and criminal investigations.

It's a sought-after job.

In the hiring session that ended this month, the department drew a record 1,562 applications for just 10 special agent openings.

The applications flooded the department's human resources section and were more than triple the number of applications from the last hiring session in May, although much of the increase might be due to a new online application system.

The system allows people to save their applications and apply again if they've been rejected before. It also offers to send an e-mail alerting registered applicants of interesting job openings.

The previous record, set in May, was 503 applications for the special agent position. Nine people were hired, including David Wood, a retired sailor and former Portsmouth police officer.

"It's more than just answering calls and taking people to jail," said Wood, 53, who spent four years with Portsmouth police before joining ABC. Assigned to the department's Hampton office, he is still in training.

On the job, "you've got to make the calls yourself," Wood said. "You've got to be proactive enough to go to the (licensee) and investigate without getting the call. You do it on your own.

"It's a lot more investigations and a lot more interaction with the public and your licensees."

ABC special agents often work with city police at restaurants or nightclubs where trouble occurs.

Underage drinking, fights and other violence can lead to criminal charges against patrons or employees, as well as civil penalties, such as fines or suspensions of alcohol-related licenses, by the ABC.

The special agent position offers a better schedule than city police work, Wood said.

There is no rotating shiftwork, far less court time and plenty of flexibility, he said.

That flexibility, according to Hughes, is one of the job's biggest advantages.

"There's a little bit of everything here," he said. "Everyone's assigned to a specific area, and you take care of what goes on in your territory."

Special agents develop skills that become particularly useful for the department, Hughes said.

Some specialize in surveillance.

Others develop a knack for public speaking and engaging groups in discussion about drinking.

For Hughes, the job has allowed him to thrive in investigations of financial crimes.

As a certified fraud examiner, Hughes spends the bulk of his time investigating the finances of nightclubs and restaurants in Williamsburg and part of James City County. Binders of case information line the bookshelves at the Hampton ABC office, and stacks of paperwork occupy his home office in Williamsburg.

"You can't live without records," he said. "All the businesses have records."

As a result, Hughes said, the paper trail can be followed to uncover tax evasion, fake alcohol purchase receipts and other forms of fraud.

Hughes investigated the troubled Infinitys nightclub on Jefferson Avenue in Newport News and found the club's managers falsified sales receipts and kept less than the required amount of food in the restaurant, among other law violations.

The restaurant surrendered its license last fall, and Hughes' investigation and testimony led the ABC to revoke Infinitys mixed beverage and beer and wine licenses this month.

The restaurant is closed.

Special agents occasionally witness fighting or discover drugs while inspecting restaurants, and they sometimes arrest a patron or employee.

But overall, the department's special agents work in a far safer environment than city or state police, who spend much of their time on patrol, working traffic-related crimes or responding to domestic disputes.

On the downside, Hughes said, agents rarely get paid for overtime.

Instead, they receive paid time off in exchange for time worked in excess of 80 hours every two weeks.

And one other thing, Wood said, chuckling: "The paperwork here is just ferocious."

This article is reprinted by permission from the Daily Press.