Band booster former president criminally charged
HALL COUNTY, Ga. - A Hall county former band booster president is facing an uncertain future for allegedly stealing from the people he was supposed to be helping.
But members of the Johnson High School band and the booster club said they'll forge forward despite the financial hit.
The band, its director, and parents gathered at Johnson High School to play in front of a FOX 5 camera. They wanted to show they may be down financially but are not out after the bands' former booster club president Perry Chad Cobb was criminally charged.
“A lot of pain, a lot of hurt, a lot of sadness, not just for me but for the kids," said Heather Miller, the treasurer for the Booster Club.
Oakwood Police told FOX 5 News that Cobb misused the booster club's debit card from July last year to August this year. The 43-year-old faces sixteen counts of financial transaction card fraud.
"Sixteen times that the members discovered from the booster club, from the checking account, that he used the debit card? Correct," said Sgt. Danny Stridej with the Oakwood Police Department.
Police said Cobb's wife Lori faces a misdemeanor charge for related activities. The Hall County school district told Fox 5 News Cobb is a bus driver for the district and his wife a paraprofessional. A district spokesman said both are suspended pending the outcome of the investigation. The band director said the financial loss affects a wide range of musical activities.
"We have a lot of different things that we use to serve over 200 students. The booster club is not just for band, it's also for the color guard. It's also for any of the auxiliaries that we employ," said Band Director D.I. Brunson.
"The booster club brings more to our band to help it financially and to grow as a band,” said band member Cameron Borders.
“I was in band, my daughter was in band, now my son is in the band, it's just kind of like a family thing,” said Heather Miller, the booster club's treasurer.
Band members, their parents and booster club members said they will push forward into the future.
Oakwood Police said Cobb faces three to five years behind bars for each count.