Ex-Miamisburg Soccer Association treasurer indicted, accused of embezzling nearly $200K

Miamisburg Soccer Association members put a goal in place on a soccer field in Miamisburg. STAFF FILE

Miamisburg Soccer Association members put a goal in place on a soccer field in Miamisburg. STAFF FILE

A former youth soccer club treasurer was indicted Thursday, accused of embezzling nearly $200,000 from the organization.

Richard M. Campbell, 59, of Miamisburg was issued a summons to appear Feb. 4 for his arraignment in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court on three counts of aggravated theft, according to his indictment.

Miamisburg Soccer Association board members contacted the Miamisburg Police Department in November 2018 after noticing discrepancies between bank statement balances and the balances reported to them by Campbell. When board members confronted him, Campbell allegedly admitted that he misappropriated some of the funds, according to a release from the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office.

Further investigation, including a forensic audit of the accounts, revealed Campbell stole nearly $200,000 between 2012 and 2018, the prosecutor’s office stated.

This news organization in January 2019 obtained from two independent sources an email the SouthStars Soccer Club in Miamisburg sent out Nov. 27, 2018. The club “discovered that there were some irregularities with the bookkeeping of funds,” according to the letter from the club.

The letter indicated concerns with that organization’s books.

“Members of the board immediately took action and began the process of investigating the situation in an effort to fully understand what was going on,” the letter stated.

Miamisburg Soccer Association Board of Directors responded Thursday to a request for comment by this news outlet with a letter saying it was aware of the legal proceedings pertaining to missing funds from the organization and thanking Miamisburg Police Department and Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office for assisting it in the issue.

However, due to current litigation, the 30-year-old non-profit volunteer organization said it was withholding comment in regard to the matter.

’The indictment is the latest of several similar cases in the Miami Valley area over the past several years.

In September, former West Carrollton Band Boosters treasurer Amy L. Wyatt-Brown, 49, was indicted on two felony charges — grand theft and theft —accusing her of stealing more than $65,000 from the organization.

The theft accusations allegedly were committed between Jan. 1, 2016, and June 29, 2019, according to the indictment. The theft was discovered by a Wyatt-Brown’s successor, who noted discrepancies in the organization’s finances after Wyatt-Brown departed the organization. Wyatt-Brown entered a not guilty plea in court last September. She is scheduled to be back in court in late February.

It was the second since 2016 that police have been asked to investigate possible embezzlement involving a member of West Carrollton Band Boosters. In 2016, then-treasurer Wyatt-Brown reported a member of the band boosters embezzled more than $10,000 from the organization, but that member was able to make restitution via a court-ordered diversion program without objection from the band boosters or the West Carrollton Police Department. As a result, the charges in the case were dismissed.

In 2018, Renee K. Nichols, of Springboro, was arrested for stealing nearly $180,000 while treasurer of Springboro Clearcreek Baseball Association between 2011 and 2017. Sentenced for aggravated theft, she was placed on probation in October 2019 and was ordered to make $175,000 in restitution of money embezzled from the group or face a three-year prison sentence.

Melissa Heerdt of Beavercreek stole more than $29,000 from a Fairborn Cub Scout pack from 2011 to 2013. She was sentenced to 30 days in jail and ordered to pay restitution in excess of $29,000.

Sara Arseneau, the former executive director of the Lebanon Chamber of Commerce, stole more than $20,000 from her employer by issuing herself 13 additional payroll checks from 2012 through 2015. She faced up to 18 months behind bars for grand theft and tampering with evidence, both fourth-degree felonies.

Warren County Common Pleas Judge Robert Peeler sentenced Arseneau in August 2016 to a suspended 18-month prison sentence, ordered her to make restitution to the chamber, complete 200 hours of community service and spend 60 days in the Warren County Jail.