Rock Falls woman charged with theft from booster club

ROCK FALLS – A woman accused of stealing more than $10,000 from the Rock Falls High School Music Boosters over a 4-year period has a pretrial conference Wednesday.

Christa M. Mitchell, 45, of Rock Falls, is charged with two counts of theft, punishable by 3 to 7 years in prison.

She has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

According to court documents, Mitchell allegedly stole between $10,000 and $100,000 from the boosters between December 2005 and March of this year.

Mitchell was the booster club’s treasurer since 2005, Superintendent Jane Eichman said. Mitchell resigned March 11, she added.

Mitchell could not be reached for comment. A phone number listed in the phone book has been disconnected.

In March, Eichman was approached by RFHS Principal Ron McCord and past band director Nicole Oberg after a check for more than $750 written on the boosters’ account bounced, she said.

From there, Eichman and the booster club examined past bank records and discovered Mitchell had taken and replaced $8,500, and another $3,800 which since has been replaced, Eichman said.

That money, raised through fundraisers and other sale activities, apparently was taken from the club’s general fund used to pay for supplies and contest entries, Eichman said.

Accounts that covered students’ trips and uniforms do not appear to be affected, she added.

On March 23, the district turned the case over to police. Mitchell turned herself in in April and was released on a $10,000 recognizance bond.

Eichman said this is the first incident of this kind in the district. After Mitchell’s arrest, the district and the booster club took steps to prevent the problem from happening again.

Now, each boosters’ account must have two signatories, so one person does not control the group’s finances, Eichman said.

A yearly audit of the boosters will be conducted and the treasurer also must turn in monthly minutes with a bank statement to the district to ensure “accountability,” Eichman said.

The boosters also no longer use Internet banking, which Eichman said is one way Mitchell allegedly moved funds into her own personal account.

“At this point, we’re not looking to do this districtwide,” Eichman said Monday. “This is the first time this has happened to us – we certainly hope that it doesn’t happen beyond this point.”