Woman accused of stealing thousands from Edgewood Athletic Boosters was concession manager

Patricia Kelly Bietenduvel of Hamilton.

Patricia Kelly Bietenduvel of Hamilton.

An Edgewood Athletic Booster member was arraigned Thursday in Butler County Common Pleas Court on felony charges stemming from theft of funds from the booster program.

Patricia Kelly Bietenduvel, 52 of Hamilton, was indicted by a grand jury on five felony charges of theft, misuse of credits cards and receiving stolen property.

“Bietenduvel was a concession manager for Edgewood Athletic Boosters and the allegation is that the theft lost is a little over $4,000,” said Assistant Butler County Prosecutor Garrett Baker.

According to the indictment, the alleged crimes occurred between May 4 and Aug. 5.

Judge Keith Spaeth released Bietenduvel on her own recognizance and scheduled a pretrial hearing for Jan. 16.

The Butler County Sheriff’s Office investigated the alleged thefts after receiving complaints from booster members about funds allegedly being spent inappropriately by Bientenduvel.

The investigation uncovered Bietenduvel had allegedly made several purchases on the booster’s credit cards, receiving cash back on multiple occasions, according to the sheriff’s office. During the height of this investigation, it was also discovered that the defendant was allegedly in possession of the criminal proceeds, the sheriff’s office said in a statement.

“On occasion it takes a village to apprehend a suspect. This criminal activity was brought to our attention by the Edgewood Athletic Boosters and we worked together,” Sheriff Richard K. Jones said.

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