CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – An arrest warrant for a Clay County cheerleading coach accused of stealing over $32,000 from the organization details how she supposedly spent the money.
Amanda Herndon, who used to run the “Crush Cheer” cheerleading group, is facing grand theft charges for taking thousands of dollars while she ran a cheerleading organization for kids, using the money like it was her personal bank account, according to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.
The warrant obtained by News4JAX shows Herndon has sole access to Crush Cheer’s VyStar account and “used Crush Cheerleading funds to get Botox injections, pay her personal cell phone bill, pay vet bills, purchase concert tickets, multiple Amazon purchases, and other various purchases that were not related to the Crush Cheerleading business”
Police also had surveillance footage of Herndon making these purchases as backup for their evidence. Investigators showed videos from Big Lots, Walgreens, Walmart and Home Depot to another member of Crush Cheer, who identified Herndon as the person making the purchases.
One purchase that raised red flags was six tickets to a popular country singer Morgan Wallen concert.
Clariss Mathieu is one of the parents who shelled out money for her child to enter the cheer program. She’s outraged over what Herndon is accused of doing.
“I felt all kinds of emotions. I felt sadness because we trusted this person and we thought that this person truly cared about our kids,” Mathieu said. “I felt anger because cheer season is not cheap. We spend thousands on each season. And the thing is, that with a lot of us, we depend on sponsorship from either family members or local small businesses. And so it’s very disheartening.”
Herndon was the president of both the Orange Park Atheltic Association and Crush Cheer, which used the fields and facilities in Orange Park.
The town manager of Orange Park said people started hearing stories that the group was using the facilities at the Orange Park Sports and Recreation Complex. A cease and desist order to the Orange Park Athletic Association was sent in June. It reads in part, “It has come to our attention that Crush Cheer continues to use the facility without a lease from the town or insurance.”
Amanda Herndon was removed from her role as president of OPAA.
“Crush Cheer” is listed as a non-profit and the money given by parents is supposed to go toward uniforms, cheerleading equipment and other similar expenses.
Herndon’s attorney did not have a comment.