Theft charges are filed in Burnsville Athletic Club case

A Burnsville man was charged Friday with stealing more than $40,000 over three years from the Burnsville Athletic Club, where he worked as commissioner of the girls' in-house basketball program.

Douglas Jay Jahnke, 47, was charged with six counts of theft by swindle, six counts of check forgery and six counts of offering a forged check in connection with the disappearance of funds from the nonprofit club, which promotes youth sports.

According to a statement from Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom, the loss of the money severely affected the club, which also lost $49,000 seven years ago to fraud. It operated at a severe loss over the past three years and was forced to raise fees by 20 percent.

A phone number for Jahnke has been disconnected, and he didn't immediately respond to an e-mail from the Star Tribune seeking comment.

According to the criminal complaint, club officials met with Jahnke in September to confront him with copies of altered checks from participants who had complained to the officials. He admitted he had been diverting registration fees for his own use and claimed he had taken $5,000 to $7,000 because of a gambling problem.

In October, the club turned over its internal findings to the Burnsville Police Department. The police traced a total of 378 altered or forged checks and eight fraudulent cash transactions directly to Jahnke, for a total of $43,203.

Each of the 18 counts against him carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and/or a maximum fine of $20,000.

"It is extremely sad to see individuals misappropriate funds intended for use by youth athletic associations," Backstrom said in the release. "Criminal activity of this nature is a breach of trust to association members, and ultimately hurts the participating athletes and their families the most."

Emily Johns • 952-882-9056