Isaiah Fox UA center

UA men's basketball player Isaiah Fox was arrested Wednesday on charges of stealing food from the U-Mart in the Student Union Memorial Center.

U-Mart employees told police this is not the first time he has shoplifted from the store, UAPD reports stated.

On Wednesday at 10:40 a.m., two employees followed Fox, anticipating another theft, as he walked down store aisles, reports stated.

They saw Fox put a bagel, cream cheese and a king-sized Hershey candy bar in the front pocket of his sweatshirt and walk out of the store. One employee followed him into the UofA Bookstore, where she found him at a magazine rack, reports stated.

The employee asked Fox to come back into the U-Mart. As she spoke with him, Fox tried to hide the bagel and cream cheese behind a magazine rack, reports stated.

The employee told police that Fox asked her to ignore the incident if he promised to not go into the U-Mart again. The employee refused and ordered Fox to return to the store and speak with her supervisor.

When Fox went back to the U-Mart, the employee returned to the bookstore and found the candy bar Fox was seen stealing. Officials from the bookstore confirmed with the employee that they do not sell that type of candy bar in their store, reports stated.

Fox admitted to both the U-Mart supervisor and police that he had stolen the bagel and the cream cheese, but not the candy bar. When the officer told Fox that the candy bar had been found in the bookstore, he said, "All right, fine. I took the Hershey Bar," reports stated.

Fox also told the officer that he has stolen from U-Mart before. He had never been confronted before, even when taking items in plain view of employees, reports stated.

The bagel and cream cheeses were valued at $1.49 and the Hershey bar was $1.09. Fox faces a misdemeanor charge of shoplifting.

Theft from the U-Mart or any other university-run building is considered prohibited student conduct and is punishable by expulsion, according to the UA Student Code of Conduct.

Police told Fox that he would be arrested for trespassing if he returns to the store, reports stated.

"I am very sorry for all of this. I feel that I've let down the coaching staff, my teammates, the fans and the school. It's so embarrassing. This is a big learning experience, and it will never happen again," Fox said.

Arizona men's basketball associate head coach Jim Rosborough was unable to comment on the situation, citing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

"We know of the situation, but we cannot comment on it," Rosborough said.

Fox, a 6-foot-9, 269-pound forward/center from Santa Monica, Calif., played in 31 of 32 games for the Wildcats last season, averaging 3.6 points and three rebounds per game.

He is expected to play a more important role on the team this year, though head coach Lute Olson has said Fox needs to keep himself in physical playing condition.

Fox said he missed Saturday's intra-squad scrimmage because of an eye injury that had to be X-rayed.