Former OR softball booster club treasurer indicted
An Anderson County Grand Jury has indicted former Oak Ridge High School softball booster club treasurer Misty Orlandino on one count of theft over $1,000 and one count of fraudulent use of a credit or debit card over $1,000.
The parent-led booster club supported the school’s softball program until August 2023. The club ended for the same incident that led to Orlandino’s conviction. She is accused of misappropriating club funds totaling at least $1,622.07.
Orlandino’s alleged misappropriation included ATM cash withdrawals from the booster club bank account, unauthorized personal purchases using the club’s debit card, and a failure to turn over a fee she collected from another family for the team’s banquet, the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office reported.
In August 2023, Orlandino remitted $1,400 of her personal funds for deposit into the school’s softball account.
“Our investigators outlined a number of deficiencies within the financial operations of this booster club,” Comptroller of the Treasury Jason E. Mumpower stated in a news release.
“Some of the problems included not requiring two signatures on checks, not maintaining adequate records, and giving one person too much control over the financial process, which increases the risk of fraud.”
Before this investigation and indictment, the club had already folded.
Oak Ridge Schools chief communications officer Molly Gallagher Smith said the club had self-reported the treasurer’s actions, and the club decided to fold as an organization. The Oak Ridge Schools administration supported this decision.
Smith said if the booster club families decide they want to restart the organization, the district is open to them doing so.
The organization is legally separate from the Oak Ridge Board of Education, but Smith said the school provides “detailed training” on the relevant regulations.
