Former treasurer accused of stealing $18.9K from Burrell Cheer Boosters

The former treasurer of the Burrell Cheer Boosters is facing criminal charges after, authorities say, she took nearly $19,000 from the organization.

Lower Burrell police charged Ashley Marie Freiberg, 40, of Upper Burrell with a felony count of theft and misdemeanor charges of receiving stolen property and bad checks.

Lower Burrell police began investigating after being notified in July about money missing from the boosters’ bank account, according to the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office.

Burrell School District Superintendent Shannon Wagner said booster group finances “are not overseen by the school district nor are they connected to the school district funding in any way.”

In a statement, head cheer coach Allison Kowalewski said the organization was made aware of the investigation July 12. According to the criminal complaint, a report of stolen money was filed with the Lower Burrell Police Department.

“Today, we were informed that the investigation has resulted in criminal charges being filed against our former booster treasurer,” Kowalewski said in the statement. “We will not make public comment on the allegations in this case as the matter proceeds to court.”

As treasurer, Freiberg was responsible for all financial transactions and managed donations, police said. She acted as treasurer for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.

According to the criminal complaint, the organization’s bank, First National Bank, notified the board in February that its account was overdrawn by more than $2,500 and closed.

According to police, Freiberg claimed there was an issue with the bank’s checks and she had been taking money from the organization’s account and using personal checks to cover the organization’s expenses until the issues were resolved. However, police said she refused to give the board banking information to support her claims.

Police said investigators obtained documentation showing a number of fraudulent transactions from the organization’s account. The payments went to Comcast, FanDuel, Verizon, Betfair, Live! Casino and Rivers Casino, as well as ATM withdrawals from April 2022 to February 2024.

The complaint said documentation was submitted to police showing that Freiberg had written Flo’s Gym a check for $720 from the First National Bank account that was closed in February.

According to the criminal complaint, Freiberg linked a Venmo account, @burrellcheerbooster, to her personal Capitol One account. On July 26, the First National Bank account address of the Burrell booster club was changed to Freiberg’s home address.

Police said they found at least three payments from the boosters’ account to Freiberg using the online payment app Zelle. Police were given a spreadsheet with remaining credit balances for cheer parents and total fundraising money provided to Freiberg totaling over $14,700.

Police said total fraudulent transactions and money Freiberg allegedly took from the booster group exceeds $18,900.

A member of the booster group confronted Freidberg about the finance issues, and she allegedly said she had a “gambling problem and was going to come clean after she returned from vacation,” according to an affidavit filed by police.

“While we are devastated emotionally and financially from the events leading up to this point, we will remain hopeful and steadfast in seeking a just resolution through the criminal process,” Kowalewski’s statement said. “We would like to thank our current board members for their swift actions, our cheer parents for their patience and support during this challenging time, and the Lower Burrell Police Department for their work and continued efforts on this case.”

The statement said vendors and individual supporters of the team worked with the program to ensure all 47 cheerleaders on the roster received their gear and were able to attend cheer camps over the summer.

“We will continue to focus on staying positive for our athletes and finding ways to make this season the best that we can,” the statement said.

Freiberg was charged by summons, so no bail had to be ordered. She did not have an attorney listed in court records.

The original preliminary hearing date on the charges of Oct. 1 has been moved to an undetermined date. A district judge is now not listed in online court documents.