Central Point police arrested a former Central Point Little League official on theft and racketeering charges.

Karen Evelyn Sheadel, 35, is suspected of taking $32,000 from the Central Point Little League’s bank account in 2003 and 2004 while she was president and treasurer of the organization, police said in a press release.

She was arrested Thursday at her home in Central Point and lodged in the Jackson County Jail on two counts of aggravated first-degree theft and charges of first-degree theft and racketeering She was released from jail Friday.

Her arrest capped an investigation by Central Point police and the Oregon Department of Justice that started in January 2005, officials said.

Central Point Little League President Terry Wood said the group’s officials suspected Sheadel of financial misconduct and voted her off the board in August 2004. She hasn’t been associated with the Little League since then.

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He said Sheadel returned league cash she had on hand at that time and about $1,200 that had been raised for an all-star trip.

Someone outside the board contacted police in January 2005, Wood said. Current and former board members cooperated with investigators, he said.

Central Point police Lt. Chuck Newell said accounting experts from the state Department of Justice’s charitable activities section helped obtain banking records and track missing money, while Central Point police Detective Kris Allison interviewed parents and league officials.

"It was a long process," he said.

In a prepared statement, the Central Point Little League board said it was "shocked at the enormity of the theft.

"We are deeply saddened to realize that the stolen money could have been used to make desperately needed improvements and repairs to our facilities," the statement said.

The league has struggled for several years to make improvements to its fields, which are just outside city limits at 2935 Hanley Road, Wood said.

"The last few years, we’ve had a tough time doing what we needed," he said. "This opens our eyes and lets us see why we’re having a tough time, to see someone with their hand in the till, so to speak."

He said the organization has switched its bank accounts to monitor them more closely and requires at least two signatures on every withdrawal. The concession stand now has cash registers so transactions are recorded on the register tape and a safe has been installed to make sure large amounts of cash aren’t accessible at the stand.

"Those on the current board take pride in helping the kids and the community," Wood said. "It’s always our goal to see that funds that belong to kids go to the kids."

Central Point Little League has 43 teams and nearly 500 kids involved this year, he said.

Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485, or e-mail aburke@mailtribune.com.