POLK COUNTY, Fla. — The President and Vice President of the Lakeland Highlands Babe Ruth Baseball League have been arrested and charged with scheming to defraud over $20,000 and grand theft over $20,000.
- President, VP of youth league charged in defrauding scheme
- Larry Blevins, John Sprague used league's funds for personal purchases
- Fraud occurred between Aug. 2017 - Sept. 2018, totaling $30,477
Detectives received a tip of possible fraudulent activity last year and began investigating Larry Blevins, 41 and John Sprague, 39, in September of 2018. Blevins was the president of the league, known as Lakeland Highlands Baseball and Softball, and Sprague was the vice president.
"This is one of the highest thefts from a sports league in Polk County that I can remember. This is truly shocking behavior. Stealing from kids and parents — just terrible. We are glad that other members of this board sought transparency and made our investigation possible," Sheriff Grady Judd said.
The fraudulent activity occurred between August 2017 and September 2018, according to detectives, totaling $30,477.
Authorities said Blevins and Sprague obtained debit cards connected to the league's bank accounts and used them for personal purchases at places like Walmart, 7-Eleven, Publix, Amazon, Facebook, Burger King, and even ATM withdrawals.
Detectives also discovered that Blevins used funds from the league's account to pay his personal bills.
Detectives confirmed with other board members of the league that none of the questionable charges were authorized.
Blevins and Sprague were arrested on November 4 and 5.