Lakeville Coach Stole Over $15K From Local Booster Club: Police

LAKEVILLE, MN — A Rosemount man is accused of stealing more than $15,000 from a Lakeville youth sports booster club.

Eric Carlyle Heflin, 65, was charged Wednesday with three felony counts of theft by swindle in connection with funds taken from the booster club between December 2018 and July 2020, authorities said.

During that time, Heflin was the varsity softball coach at Lakeville South High School.

In September, the Lakeville Police Department received a report that Heflin was suspected of misusing funds intended for the softball team, authorities said. As head coach, it was part of Heflin's job to buy equipment for the team.

Police were told that Heflin submitted an invoice to the booster club requesting a reimbursement of $2,365 for work done on the softball field. The invoice said ABC Concrete and Laser Grading, located in Farmington, completed the work.

That company does not exist, and the invoice appeared to be falsified, police said. Authorities later found nine other instances of falsified invoices that were submitted by Heflin, a criminal complaint states.

When questioned by a detective over the phone, Helfin initially denied knowing anything about the fraudulent transactions but eventually admitted that some of the invoices he submitted were falsified, according to the complaint.

"Any theft of monies intended to support youth athletics is very disturbing," Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said in a news release. "The alleged victims in this case include not just the Booster Club but all those who donated money to this organization."