VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — A former prosecutor in the Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office is accused of multiple financial crimes, including embezzlement and money laundering.

James Panagis was indicted on Monday by a Virginia Beach grand jury, Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney Colin Stolle announced Tuesday night.

Panagis was charged with four counts of embezzlement by a public officer, four counts of embezzlement >= $500, uttering a forged check, and money laundering-conduct a financial transaction, proceeds from felony activity.

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The charges stem from Panagis allegedly taking restitution money that belonged to victims while he was employed in the commonwealth’s attorney’s office. Stolle says Panagis was employed from August 22, 2015, and February 16, 2022.

Stolle says he called for the investigation into Panagis on August 2022, after discovering irregularities on Panagis’ files.

“I immediately requested the Virginia State Police conduct a criminal investigation and asked that a Special Prosecutor be appointed,” Stolle said in a statement. “I also immediately contacted the Virginia State Bar lead ethics counsel who advised me to turn this matter over for their review after the conclusion of the criminal investigation.”

The Chesterfield Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office has been asked to handle the prosecution of the case.

Stolle says he can’t say more about the case, due to pending special prosecutor’s appointment, but that his office has fully cooperated in the investigation. He did say that there were no disciplinary issues with Panagis during his time with the office and he left on his own accord.

“Prosecutors, in particular, must practice law with the utmost integrity in order for the justice system to work, and that is what I expect from the prosecutors in my office. While ethical restraints prevent me from commenting on a pending investigation, I will be available to answer questions when this matter is concluded.”

Virginia Beach-based law firm Wolcott Rivers Gates meanwhile announced Panagis was fired from their office on Tuesday, and that they had no further comment until the end of the judicial process.

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Slowly, but surely, the Virginia offensive line is getting healthy. After missing starters Brian Stevens and McKale Boley for more than a week, Tony Elliott was happy to report on Monday that Stevens has since returned to being a full participant in practice and is “hopeful” that Boley will be able to return sometime next week in advance of UVA’s season-opener against Richmond.

“[Brian] Stevens is back, rolling, and we’re hoping that sometime this week, before we get ready to really dive in to Richmond prep, that we’ll get [McKale] Boley back,” Elliott said. “But, Brian’s been back practicing. He started back last week and has looked good. Boley’s doing some stuff, in the underwater treadmill, in the AlterG, trying to get his conditioning up. He’ll be back on the land this week and then hopeful for next week. But again, you’re dealing with a high-ankle sprain. Those things are tricky.”

The return of Stevens to practice is paramount for the Cavaliers, as he took over as UVA’s starting center in week 3 last season and was exceptional in that spot, earning an All-ACC honorable mention after rating as the top run-blocking center in the ACC according to Pro Football Focus. This year, Stevens has been named to the preseason watch list for the Rimington Trophy, presented annually to the top center in college football. Boley, meanwhile developed significantly in his sophomore season, starting all 12 games at left tackle for the Cavaliers. His return will also be pivotal for protecting whichever quarterback Virginia ends up starting.

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Elliott didn’t offer any specific updates on other injured Cavaliers, but emphasized that Virginia’s roster is getting healthier as a whole as fall camp comes to a close this week.

“We’re getting a lot of guys back this week, so for the next week and a half, as we prime up for gametime, we should have some more continuity,” Elliott said.

Of course, there are still a few notable players out for Virginia in addition to Boley. Junior running back Xavier Brown and junior wide receiver JR Wilson are both unlikely to be available in time for the start of the season, which is less than two weeks away, but Elliott expects both players to return early in the season, if not by week 1. Senior linebacker James Jackson missed most of fall camp rehabbing from an offseason cleanup, but should be ready to go by the time the season begins.

Senior defensive end Bryce Carter and graduate offensive lineman Drake Metcalf suffered long-term injuries, though Elliott noted that Metcalf could return from the Achilles injury he suffered back in the spring by November or even October. Unfortunately, four Cavaliers have been lost for the season: junior linebacker Stevie Bracey, sophomore defensive end Mekhi Buchanan, junior offensive lineman Noah Hartsoe, and freshman wide receiver Triston Ward.

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Tony Elliott held his final press conference of fall camp on Monday evening and, somewhat expectedly, he has yet to name a starting quarterback as the competition between Tony Muskett and Anthony Colandrea continues with less than two weeks remaining before the 2024 Virginia football season begins.

Here’s what Elliott said on Monday about his timeline for determining the starting quarterback for week 1.

“I’m hopeful that, as we get through this week, in fairness to whoever it is, he’ll at least have a week to prep as the starter, but we’re gonna have some tough conversations with all of our personnel over the next couple of days,” Elliott said. “This is a little bit different because of the times that we’ve had in camp. We’ve really been able to push these competitions to get a good body of work to make decisions. So, I’m hopeful that sometime this week, we should be able to settle in on who’s going to be the guy, or if it’s going to be a combination of both of them, again. For those guys, they’ve battled their tail off. They’ve both done a good job. And now it’s on us as coaches to do the right thing based on the body of work as we truly evaluate it and what gives us the best chance to go win football games.”

It was always a possibility, and a relatively likely one, that Elliott would wait until the week of UVA’s season-opener against Richmond to publicly name a quarterback. But not only has Elliott and the Cavalier coaching staff not given any indication as to which way they are leaning as fall camp comes to a close, but Elliott also said he hasn’t ruled out playing both quarterbacks. When asked about the possibility of playing both quarterbacks, this was his answer:

“That’s to be determined. If that’s the way that it shakes out, you know, that’s the way that it shakes out. And again, we’ll have those conversations and see what’s best for the football team,” said Elliott. “I think you got both guys that are very, very capable. But I’m not gonna say yes, I’m not gonna say no. Those will be conversations that we’ll have the rest of this week to determine as we get ready to prep and how we need to prep for Richmond.”

Tony Muskett and Anthony Colandrea both started six games last season and each had their ups and downs, which is why this quarterback competition is so close. But last season, all of the games Colandrea started were with Muskett unable to play due to various injuries. Now, both quarterbacks are healthy and Elliott and his coaching staff have a tough decision to make with many factors to be considered.

Which quarterback gives Virginia the best chance to win? How long is the leash for the eventual starter in week 1? Does Tony Muskett’s experience give him the nod or does Anthony Colandrea’s future potential as a younger player make a difference? Does playing both quarterbacks in the same game offer more benefits than drawbacks?

I, for one, do not envy the UVA coaching staff for the decision before them, but the clock is ticking.

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