Realty opens new office

OXFORD -- Century 21 Hancock Properties has settled in at their new location at the giant former Western Auto & Sporting Goods store building at 126 Main St.

The official unveiling was Saturday, with an open house timed with the third annual N.C. Hot Sauce Festival. Hancock Properties transitioned from cramped quarters at 106 Gilliam St. approximately four weeks ago.

At the new location, Hancock Properties divided the first floor in half, with the northern half of the first floor, 124 Main St., being for lease. The second floor serves as offices for the real estate agents.

Wills Hancock, owner of the company and the company's managing broker, has said he has been eyeing most of the third floor and the entire fourth floor loft as residential, depending on what develops in the central business district.

The Main Street structure was once part of the Raylass department store chain in a central Oxford bustling with cafes, a Chevrolet dealership, drug stores, a hotel, service stations and tobacco warehouses.

UNC football case ends

HILLSBOROUGH -- The kidnapping, robbery and sexual assault case in which three UNC football players were tied up and robbed in December 2007 ended quietly this week in Orange County Superior Court when one of the suspects pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors and received probation.

Monique Jenice Taylor, 30, who was originally charged with first-degree kidnapping, felony conspiracy, sexual battery and resisting a police officer, pleaded guilty to one count of false imprisonment and one count of resist delay and obstruct a law enforcement officer in a plea agreement.

Superior Court Judge Paul Ridgeway sentenced Taylor, who lives in Greenville, to 30 days in prison, but he suspended the sentence and put her on supervised probation for 12 months. He also told her if she performs 120 hours of community service within four months, she will not have to pay court costs or the attorney's fees. She agreed.

Contact Mark Donovan at mdonovan@heraldsun.com or (919) 419-6655. E-mail news of interest to our readers to news@heraldsun.com.