Juniors Casey Spivey (left) and Patrick Dolan purchased Peach Bowl tickets through eBay from Seung-Hui Cho.

Juniors Casey Spivey and Patrick Dolan said they'd sell the tickets they'd bought from Cho on eBay and donate the money to a charity that helps Virginia Tech victims' families.

Cho sold Peach Bowl tickets to University students last winter

eBay merchandise may help Va. Tech charities

By: CAROLYN CRIST

Posted: 4/25/07

University juniors Casey Spivey and Patrick Dolan had contact with Virginia Tech shooter Seung-Hui Cho in a way they never anticipated - through eBay.

They purchased tickets from him for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl between the University and Virginia Tech in December 2006.

After news sources such as MSNBC and CNN released Cho's eBay account name, Spivey received more than 50 e-mails from eBay users informing him he and his roommate Dolan purchased the tickets from Cho.

"I got chills when I received the first e-mail Saturday morning," said Spivey, a pre-medicine major from Jonesboro. "I was not expecting to get caught in the middle of this."

eBay users looked at Cho's past transactions and e-mailed Spivey through his eBay account.

"There are people who go as far as to ask if I have a phone number," he said.

Spivey sent Dolan a text message Saturday, and neither of them believed it.

They checked the ticket and account numbers on the CNN Web site later to confirm.

Several people suggested they should sell the ticket stubs on eBay, and one already offered $75.

"We will sell the tickets and give the money to charity," Spivey said. "I haven't researched anything yet, but I have three roommates from Virginia and can find a charity that helps the victims' families."

Dolan, a marketing major from Richmond, Va., said he knows students who attend Virginia Tech who can help.

Spivey said he hasn't posted his ticket yet but plans to do so within the next few weeks.

"I've been studying this week and haven't had time, but I plan to set up an account soon," he said. "I thought this would be a way to turn something bad into something good."

One of the people who e-mailed Spivey said he looked at the transactions out of curiosity.

"I wanted to know if others knew they had interacted with Cho," said Jeff Jones, 35, a firefighter and paramedic who lives in Prescott, Ariz. "I thought it would be pretty easy that some wouldn't know (they had interacted with Cho)."

eBay administrators now have blocked Cho's profile and account information from public access, Jones said.

"My guess is that so many people have e-mailed people like Spivey," he said in a phone interview Tuesday.

Jones said if Spivey and Dolan plan to sell the tickets for charity, they should get it approved by eBay first.

"I think the idea is fantastic, but eBay won't allow you to sell something for charity without their approval," he said. "Some sinister people would just say they changed their minds after an item was sold for a high amount."

Spivey and Dolan said they would get approval from eBay and find a legitimate charity for the Virginia Tech families before posting the tickets for sale.