Former Treasurer Accused of Stealing More Than $19K from Team
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced that the former Treasurer of the Cedar Cliff Youth Baseball Association is facing multiple felony charges of theft following an investigation by the Office of Attorney General after a referral by the Cumberland County District Attorney.
“This former Treasurer of a youth baseball association is charged with using his position of authority for personal enrichment,” Attorney General Josh Shapiro said. “The families of these Little League players trusted the treasurer with funds meant for their children to register to play baseball – instead, he lined his own pockets and deposited the money in personal accounts.”
Wayne Crecelius, 53, of Linda Lane, Camp Hill, was arrested today and accused of stealing more than $19,000, between March 2017 to September 2017, from the little league’s fund. Crecelius allegedly endorsed and cashed numerous checks made out to himself, made cash withdrawals, made unauthorized purchases at grocery stores and failed to deposit cash collected from player registration and various fundraising events— all without permission of the Association.
The investigation began after December 28, 2017 when the Lower Allen Township Police Department received a report that the former Treasurer of the Cedar Cliff Youth Baseball Association (Crecelius) unlawfully took money from the Association’s financial accounts. During the seven months Crecelius was stealing money, it was deposited in accounts not associated with Cedar Cliff Youth Baseball Association. The players’ ages range from 5-19, according to their website on GoFundMe.
“Thanks to strong law enforcement collaboration between the Lower Allen Township Police Department and the Office of Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation, we’re ensuring this man won’t be able to betray the community of New Cumberland again,” said Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “While $19,000 may not seem like the largest theft, this was money that was supposed to be supporting and helping children – that makes this crime even worse.”
Crecelius’ preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday December 20 at 2:30 p.m. The defendant was released on his own recognisance before Senior Judge Paula Correal. The case will be prosecuted by Deputy Attorney General Nicole Forzato.
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