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Volunteer coach ordered to pay back stolen money
By WAVENEY ANN MOORE, Times Staff Writer ST. PETERSBURG -- A former volunteer coach for the Azalea Youth Soccer League has admitted to stealing from two teams and the concession stand he helped to run. Ronald Faw, 48, who coached an under-10 and an under-15 girls team, admitted to the theft through his public defender during a court appearance Monday. Faw, tall, graying and bespectacled, was sentenced to three years' probation and ordered to make financial restitution to the league. The Largo resident had been accused of embezzling at least $11,500, though it remains unclear how much money he actually took. During Monday's hearing, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Nelly Khouzam asked league officials to provide documentation of the missing funds so she can order a repayment plan. Al Bartolotta, president of the Azalea league, was not surprised by the sentence. "I pretty much anticipated it," he said. The former coach, who was charged with passing a bad check almost two years ago, had adjudication withheld during Monday's pretrial hearing. Meanwhile, the Azalea league has taken steps to have Faw suspended from the Florida Youth Soccer Association, board member Jill Iacopelli said. Faw first began coaching with Azalea in the 2000-2001 season and was in charge of two of the league's competitive teams. It was during the 2001-2002 soccer season, say league officials, that he stole registration fees from the teams he coached and money from the concession stand. As he left the courtroom Monday, Faw disputed the sum of money he has been accused of taking. "The totals are way off," he said. As he hurried away, he implied that others also had stolen money. League officials dismissed his accusation. "I think it's kind of grasping at straws," Bartolotta said. "We've never had this before, ever," Mrs. Iacopelli said. "I've been there since 1984. He's just trying to blow smoke where there's no fire." Bartolotta said it is difficult to determine exactly how much money the organization has lost. The league, which has an enrollment of 1,000 boys and girls, ages 4 to 18, in recreational and competitive programs, is one of the largest in Pinellas County. Faw coached two competitive teams, where the cost for members to register was $400 a season. Faw and his wife also ran the concession stand. Bartolotta said the league has looked at concession sales from previous years to try to estimate how much was stolen from the snack operation. He said the organization also has instituted safeguards to protect its finances in the future. "After all this happened, we definitely started tightening up with the funds," he said. Bartolotta said parents had been shocked to learn of the theft. Faw had been a well-liked and hardworking coach, he said. "The under-10, he started that team. He's a good guy and really, I think he really does like the kids. The guy was very active as a volunteer. If we needed help, he would jump in and help us out. I think this is the type of guy, if you first meet him, you won't expect this to be something he would do," Bartolotta said. "I don't think this was done maliciously," said Mrs. Iacopelli. "I think it was done out of need." Faw, who is married and whose daughter was a member of the league, is unemployed. He receives a monthly disability check. Azalea officials, though angry, have expressed compassion for his predicament. "I don't know how we are going to approach it," Bartolotta said of the court-mandated repayment plan. "We don't want to take food off this guy's table." "You can't get blood from a stone," said Mrs. Iacopelli. "I hope he honors his restitution agreement, but seeing his circumstances, I don't see how we can get the money back."
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
