The former treasurer for the Arlington Middle School Dance Team Booster Club has been indicted on felony theft charges for allegedly using thousands of booster club dollars for her personal use, Shelby County Dist. Atty. Gen. Amy Weirich said Friday.
A Shelby County Grand Jury indicted Charlene Wheeler, 44, on charges of theft of property over $10,000 following an investigation by the State of Tennessee Comptroller’s Office.
According to the Comptroller’s audit, between April and December of 2015 Wheeler misappropriated just over $11,000 in booster club funds by writing unauthorized checks to herself, making personal purchases with the club debit card and making ATM withdrawals from the booster club account for personal use.
Jeffery G. Mayo, chief of staff for the Arlington Community Schools district, noted that booster clubs are run by parents, and the suspect was not an employee of ACS. He released the following statement:
“Arlington Community Schools has been working closely with the state comptroller’s office for the past year after it was discovered through protocols guided by district policy, that there were discrepancies within the finances of a school’s booster club. The school reported the discrepancies to the district office and the district filed an immediate report with the comptroller’s office. While school booster clubs are their own non-profit organizations independent from the respective schools or school district, Arlington Community Schools will continue to work closely with school booster clubs to insure proper financial oversight.”
CAROLYN BAHM is the editor of The Bartlett Express. Contact her at (901) 433-9138 or via email to carolyn.bahm@journalinc.com.
