Former CIS coach Steve LaLonde pleads not guilty to embezzlement charges

Steve LaLonde, coach of the Mount Anthony Union High School football team this season, is…

BENNINGTON — The coach of the Mount Anthony Union High School football team this season has been arrested on a felony count of embezzlement, stemming from financial dealings with the school and his players.

Steve LaLonde, 48, of Bennington, was arrested Tuesday following an investigation by Bennington Police, after an MAU school official reported a problem, Detective Sgt. David S. Rowland said.
LaLonde is scheduled to be arraigned in Bennington Superior Court criminal division on Nov. 16.
According to Rowland, LaLonde collected money from players on the middle and high school football teams to purchase sweatshirts. The players never received the sweatshirts, however, Rowland said. Tim Brown, MAU’s director of athletics and activities, contacted police after parents began to inquire about the sweatshirts, Rowland said.
That’s when police noticed that the $1,725 raised to purchase the apparel was handled differently than normal. Rowland said money for such purchases normally goes into a school activities account. The school then issues a check when an invoice is received.
However, Rowland said the investigation revealed that LaLonde deposited the $1,725 at a local bank into an account under his name. The money was then wired in two installments — $1,000 and $725 — to a location in Texas. The investigation revealed the wire transfers were used to pay LaLonde’s rent, according to Rowland.
“The kids’ money was used for personal benefit. He has since returned most of the money … to the company where the shirts were ordered, so the kids will get their sweatshirts,” Rowland said.
The sweatshirt incident prompted Brown to examine other financial dealings involving LaLonde, Rowland said. Three reimbursement requests filed by LaLonde appeared “exactly alike,” Rowland said, and there is no evidence proving that LaLonde received the items he sought reimbursements for. The three requests totaled $975, Rowland said.
The embezzlement charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. LaLonde was released following his arrest on the condition he does not return to MAU.
Brown declined to comment on the case Friday. “I’ve been told by school officials that I am not to comment on this. It’s being handled by the police,” he said.
LaLonde did not travel with the MAU football team to its final game in Brattleboro on Oct. 29. Brown did say Friday that LaLonde has been informed he will not return next year as the team’s head coach.
“He has received notice that his contract will not be renewed,” Brown said.
LaLonde is a part-time employee of the Manchester Journal, a sister publication of the Banner.

by NEAL P. GOSWAMI

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