On the warpath - theft and possible fraud in a junior football club

[lisa_spyder]

Remember this thread?

A Perfect End to a Perfect Week - my life is wonderful!

Yeah...well three and half weeks later I am still happy; but want to throttle the previous committee for the junior football club. In fact I am going to throttle them. My life has been totally consumed by this (others on the new committee also); I have unsorted paperwork everywhere (nothing was filed); financial records are scarce, assets are missing, things of great importance like premiership flags are missing...

No attention to the law; wrong financial reporting; past president MIA...what is wrong with people??? This is a junior football club for goodness' sake - the ONLY ones who truly suffer from all of this are the kids .

So now after weeks of asking, begging and cajoling (to the previous committee) I have issued an ultimatum. Deliver everything by the end of the week or face theft and fraud charges. And I will do it...I will go to the police and press charges. I will also lodge an official complaint with Consumer Affairs here who are the governing body for incorporated associations.

We want to get the accounts audited but I don't have anywhere near enough info to do that . Cheque butts are missing; most years I have no completed financial statements (no general ledgers etc either)...I don't even have an assets list!

Damn these a-holes...I am going to do them like a dog's dinner. The club needs so many things updated etc and these pr!cks have left us with not much money to start the season...and I can't even track where it has all gone!

I look at our football kids - who are great kids from all walks of life; some who do not have a great life at home and who love being part of the club...I just want to be able to give them everything they need at club level but instead we (current committee) are all bogged down in trying to clean up the mess.

Dammit - I just needed to rant...

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by lisa_spyder

Dammit - I just needed to rant...

Well, THIS is the place for it!

[stomachmonkey]

Henceforth let Lisa be known as The Thunder from Down Under.

Go get em.

[onlycafe]

it begins to sound like a job for you and angela to do.
kick some ass and take some names.
make 'em holler calf rope!

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Henceforth let Lisa be known as The Thunder from Down Under.

Got that.

[jyl]

Time for a Thelma and Louise re-run! Go get 'em.

[Laneco]

By the time Lisa gets done with them, they're all going to be tore up from the floor up!

GO LISA!

angela

[LWJ]

Fraud does happen. In my neighborhood a person has been arrested for ripping off 80+k from some sports teams. I know her. Sad story.

Good luck. Follow your gut on this.
Larry

[lowyder993s]

Originally Posted by LWJ

Fraud does happen. In my neighborhood a person has been arrested for ripping off 80+k from some sports teams. I know her. Sad story.

Good luck. Follow your gut on this.
Larry

Child's play...a block away a guy is going in for 7 for ripping off fam and friends for 8.5mil. Saw them moving out last weekend. Good Riddance.

[M.D. Holloway]

Dont feel like your the only one out there getting scammed, we play against this club mentioned below - $800,000 taken over 5 years!

President of North Texas youth soccer club accused of stealing | Dallas - Fort Worth News | wfaa.com | Investigates

The Solar Soccer Club has been defeated not by one of its opponents, but allegedly by a trusted former club president who parents say stole hundreds of thousands of dollars, leaving them scrambling to make a save.

The club's 300 young players and their parents are fighting in court to overcome an unlikely opponent, one of their own.

Parents say David Ringer siphoned off more than $800,000 from them over the last five years. He was the last man many of them would suspect.

"He was the chairman," said Steven Badger, the parent of a Solar Soccer Club player. "He was the president. He was the bookkeeper; he was the counsel; he was the administrator. Everything was run out of his office."

Ringer was so trusted with the club's money, no one questioned his bookkeeping until just a few months ago when checks to coaches started to bounce.

Parents said upon closer inspection, they found a checkbook ledger indicating the chairman and president had been paying himself $5,000, $10,000 and up to $15,000 checks, sometimes just a few days apart.

In all, over a five-year period, parents allege in court filings that Ringer paid himself more than $800,000 not only from membership dues, but from more than $300,000 in loans that no one but Ringer previously knew about.

Ringer, who has filed for bankruptcy, said he's prohibited from discussing his case. However, in a letter to News 8, Ringer called the allegations "defamatory" as well as "unfounded, unwarranted ... and in dispute."

Once Ringer was confronted by parents, he told them he had been paying himself for legal work done for the club over the years, the parents said. While he had not been submitting monthly invoices, he did produce a schedule of itemized charges to support his claims, charges that also angered the parents. The charges included hours billed for "attending games," "rescheduling games" and "fundraising issues."

"So, it didn't wash and it also didn't wash because he never issued an invoice," Badger said. "He submitted a bill for legal service to the club and that's just lawyering 101. If you are going to charge someone for your services, you have to put a bill together and the club never saw a bill."

Solar Soccer Club parents have forced Ringer to step down. They are also intervening in Ringer's bankruptcy, seeking repayment and restructuring of all outstanding loans.

Parents and organizers say the club has rebounded financially. But, just like in the game of soccer, the parents vow to learn from their mistakes.

"The lesson is that for any 501(c)(3) or any charitable group, no matter who's running it or how trusted he or she is, you got to have some checks and balances," Badger said. "You got to pay attention."

[M.D. Holloway]

I am going to do them like a dog's dinner.

I have no idea what it means but in the right circumstance that phrase is priceless!!! Thats one you have to make your tag line.

[A930Rocket]

Checks and balances. Why is it so hard?

[944Larry]

Sorry to hear all this Lisa. Hope your're not mad at me for saying "good luck never lasts"!

[Bill Douglas]

Good luck Lisa.

The banks are very helpful in these situations and produce bank statements for many years gone by. This way you can talk to the relevant people and say "This money was spent at Lygone Street... this was spent at *** Sauna and Massage (joke) etc during YOUR watch, so you are responsible for paying it back."

[HardDrive]

Utterly sucks.

Fraud in kids leagues is sadly not unknown in the US, thats for sure. The amounts of money involved seem small given the scale of the financial world, but your right Lisa, its the kids that get hurt.

Bastards.

[oldE]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

Good luck Lisa.

The banks are very helpful in these situations and produce bank statements for many years gone by. This way you can talk to the relevant people and say "This money was spent at Lygone Street... this was spent at *** Sauna and Massage (joke) etc during YOUR watch, so you are responsible for paying it back."

Good advice here.

I suspect you know the drill. Go in with documents of authorization and the doors will open.
I agree that many organizations suffer because of boards which failed at their jobs.
Clean house Sister!
(TFDU I like that!)
Les

[GH85Carrera]

How long does the bank keep the records of checking account? If you at least know the bank that had the account they may well have the records for the last few years. You will likely need a forensic CPA.

[Jeff Higgins]

I sure hope the kids can keep playing through all of this; that's the important part. A ball, a pitch, and some organization should keep them afloat while you kick ass and take names. No prisoners - folks who defraud kids' clubs need to be clubbed like so many baby seals.

[pwd72s]

Jeff makes a very good point, Lisa...kids foremost. But nail 'em, okay?

[Bill Douglas]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

How long does the bank keep the records of checking account?

The law requires 15 years around here. I used to pull bank statements as part of a job. Most of the requests for old statements were from the police.