The volunteer-run Copper Hills youth baseball league in West Jordan is reeling after its longtime bookkeeper was accused of quietly siphoning off tens of thousands of dollars from the program’s coffers.
Prosecutors say the former treasurer, 52-year-old West Jordan resident Karen Rochelle Beebe, misappropriated about $76,000 from the nonprofit over several years. According to charging documents, Beebe was fired in January after league leaders uncovered years of unpaid tax filings and unusual bank activity. Parents and volunteers who spend their evenings slinging hot dogs at the snack shack say they were blindsided when board members suddenly announced a full audit of the books.
Beebe was charged Thursday in 3rd District Court with multiple counts, including four counts of communications fraud and five counts of unlawful use of a financial card, all listed as second-degree felonies, along with additional communications fraud, unlawful-use, and embezzlement counts and a misdemeanor for doing business without a license, as reported by KSL. The investigation began in February when the league’s president contacted police, the charging paperwork states. Those documents say the league discovered its taxes had not been filed in seven years and that it lost its nonprofit status because of that lapse.
Public records list Beebe as the league’s treasurer on multiple years of Form 990 tax returns, and the West Jordan Copper Hills Baseball League identifies the Ron Wood Baseball Complex at 5900 West New Bingham Highway as its home field. ProPublica shows Beebe named as treasurer on filings through at least 2017, and the league’s website describes Ron Wood as its main complex. It is a familiar setup in youth sports: a small, volunteer-driven operation handling real money with relatively little formal oversight, which can leave organizations exposed when trust is misplaced.
After Beebe was let go, board members combed through the league’s accounts and found what a police affidavit describes as a pattern of online charges to the snack-bar bank account tied to Beebe’s card number. The filing cites Walmart.com purchases, roughly $50 to $600 at a time, multiple times per month over about four years, along with Amazon and Vrbo charges and payments to universities the league had no connection with. Investigators pointed to items such as menstrual tablets, makeup remover, and hair-care products as inconsistent with any youth baseball purpose. The affidavit also notes the organization paid about $13,000 through payroll to a bookkeeping firm called KRB Tax and Accounting even though state records listed that business as dissolved in 2013. When questioned, Beebe acknowledged doing the league’s taxes and accounting and told investigators she needed an attorney, according to KSL.
How Boards Guard Against Theft
Nonprofit advisors say the best defense against this kind of alleged scheme is usually not high-tech software but basic, boring safeguards. Routine controls include separating bookkeeping duties, requiring two people to sign off on unusual payments, reconciling bank accounts every month, and bringing in an independent reviewer to glance over payroll and vendor checks.
The Nonprofit Risk Management Center notes that internal checks and tips are the most common ways fraud gets uncovered and recommends written whistleblower policies plus periodic outside reviews. Strengthening those simple measures, experts say, can shorten how long a scheme runs and cut the losses for programs that depend heavily on volunteers and registration fees.
Legal Implications
The counts filed against Beebe are allegations, and she is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. Under Utah law, second-degree felonies can carry an indeterminate prison term of one to 15 years, third-degree felonies can bring up to five years, and a class B misdemeanor can result in up to six months in jail, according to state statute. See the sentencing statutes in Utah Code §76-3-203 and Utah Code §76-3-204.
The case also ripples into local budget talks. West Jordan meeting materials show the league requested a service-in-lieu fee arrangement for the 2026 season, underscoring its municipal ties and the potential consequences of any financial shortfall. The city placed that request on a May council hearing agenda, a reminder that volunteer-run programs regularly intersect with city finances. It is not yet publicly clear whether any city funds were affected; investigators are relying on the league’s internal records and police filings.
Prosecutors filed the charges this week, and the investigation remains active. Upcoming hearings will appear in Salt Lake County court dockets. We will continue tracking public filings and statements from local officials as the case moves through the 3rd District Court system.
