Booster Club says change in protocol will prevent fraud

By Neal Hogden

The Colby Booster Club will be enacting new measures to deter fraud after the club failed to locate over $113,000 in club funds in 2022. The incident was investigated by the Colby-Abbotsford Police Department but no charges were filed against a former board member who had been accused of taking the money.

According to a joint statement by the booster club, the board decided at a later meeting that a civil case against the board member would cost too much to pursue. The board decided to forgo a civil case and decided to instead change the way the club handles money moving forward.

The booster club board released a state-

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ment that included a message to donors and supporters of the club.

“The booster club is working very hard to ensure that it is able to provide programming and assistance to the sports programs of the Colby School District. The booster club made it a priority from the beginning to ensure that our athletes, coaches and youth sports continued with the same support that we have always given them. They never went without [necessary funding].”

The club notified the Colby School Board of the incident in closed session but otherwise has been acting as an entity separate from the school.

According to the police report, several booster club members met with Colby-Abby Police Chief Jason Bauer and Lt. Alex Bowman to report the theft in April of 2022.

At that time, the board members stated all the financial documentation was a mess so they were not sure if the board member in question had stolen the money or just had poor documentation of the funds. An investigation into the matter was initiated and Bowman obtained phone records and interviews with those around the board member.

Bowman noted in his report that a bank statement from February 2022 showed there was $842.50 in the booster club’s account. However, the board member’s report to the booster club said there was a balance of $30,049 in the account. Bowman said when the board member started in 2004, there was $65,000 in the account and no money was ever deposited into the account from 20042022.

After a lengthy interview with the spouse of the former board member, Bowman and Bauer concluded that the matter would have to be taken up in civil court if the booster club so chose. The booster club board noted that it did not have other theories as to where the money might have went.

The board said in its statement that the club attempted to recover the money but was unsuccessful in doing so. “This was an unfortunate event that took the booster club by surprise,” the statement read. “Steps were taken to investigate the matter and review legal options to pursue recovery of the monies. The club hired an auditor and a lawyer to assist in this process. The club tried to recoup the monies for about a year but was not successful. It was truly our hope to recover some of the money taken.”