Penn State linebacker recruit arrested on forgery charges
Zayd Issah, a former Central Dauphin High School star who signed a national letter of intent last month with Penn State, has been arrested in an alleged scheme to purchase food with counterfeit money.
Penn State linebacker recruit arrested on forgery charges
Joe Juliano
Penn State signee Zayd Issah, a highly sought-after linebacker from Central Dauphin High School in Harrisburg, has been arrested and charged for allegedly attempting to pass counterfeit money to buy food at a McDonald’s restaurant.
Issah, who is 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds, was one of 12 players who signed a national letter of intent with the Nittany Lions on Feb. 6 to play football. It is not yet known how the arrest will affect Issah’s career at Penn State, where coach Bill O’Brien had expected him to compete for a backup role in his first season.
A request for comment from Penn State spokesman went unanswered Thursday.
According to court documents, Issah, 18, was arrested on March 10 by Susquehanna Township police and charged with eight counts – two felony counts each of forgery and conspiracy to commit forgery, and four misdemeanor counts of theft by deception.
He was released on $1,000 unsecured bail pending a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 9 before Dauphin County Magisterial District Judge James A. Lenker.
According to the Harrisburg Patriot-News, Issah and two friends went into a McDonald’s on March 9, tried to pass counterfeit money and fled after police were summoned. Police caught the two friends and both implicated Issah in the scheme, saying he passed counterfeit bills at two locations, the newspaper said.
Police also intercepted Facebook messages between Issah and one of the suspects, which it said proved that Issah knew the money was counterfeit.
Issah had given Penn State an oral commitment last June but withdrew that pledge after the NCAA imposed sanctions against the football program. He re-committed in December.
--Joe Juliano
This dude blew his free ride and his Mensa membership all in one shot. How about working at a McDonalds instead of trying to steal from it? Oh no, wouldn't want to actually work for something.— hunglikeaton- He will be convicted for passing funny money. That means he probably couldn't work for fortune 500 companies, like McDonald's or Wendy's. — ToxicLogik
- Just goes to show that most of these players are a ball away from a prison career. Surely don't have much of a brain!— twpman
- Feed me more, Feed me more— ToniBaloney
- Big deal.— friedmozzarela
- A college scholarship down the drain all for........a Big Mac, Large Fries and Coke, paid with funny money. And a criminal record all for Chicken McNuggets (Honey Mustard sauce, please) and a Vanilla Shake.
The question is how the prosecutor and judge keep a straight face through the court proceedings.— DelawareRiverRat - Hope this means this clown will never darken the ground in the geographic center of Pennsylvania! And, to demonstrate he's way shy in the between the ears department, he was attempting to thieve McClown Town "food". This really was a NO BRAINER!— BEMiller
- He's Penn State Material!— philaphil
- PSU needs money to pay off the Sandusky mess, so they recruited this kid to print up some quick cash.— lazybone
- Its time PSU stands up and says the football program isn't more important than the schools reputation. This kids scholoraship should be revoked.— MWW-54
- He gone.— ACBaughman
- He's gotta "tender" his resignation!— philaphil
- Want fries with that, dude?— dasher
- not so funny now i guess.— bloodymess
- He lived in a gated community— Markitup
This season is Joe's fourth season on the paper's Penn State beat. He previously covered the Nittany Lions for United Press International from 1976 to 1984.
Emily Kaplan is the Inquirer’s fall intern covering the Nittany Lions. She is a senior at Penn State and has covered a variety of sports for the university’s student-run paper, The Daily Collegian. Over the last two years, she has reported for The Associated Press from State College.
A Montclair, N.J. native, she has also interned at MLB Network, NHL.com and covered the 2012 Olympics in London. Follow her on Twitter here @EKaplan24.
