A Chicora woman is accused of stealing more than $20,000 from the Butler Girls Softball Booster Club and spending at least part of it on online gambling, according to Butler County detectives.

Nicole Renea Karenbauer, 48, reportedly conducted 39 fraudulent transactions from the club’s expense account totaling $20,294.49 between May 2024 and June 2025. She was charged Thursday, July 23, with felony theft following the discovery of the transactions earlier this year.

Police said the team’s coach, Kara Sroka, contacted them in January after several checks of the booster club’s had been returned due to insufficient funds. She and the club’s treasurer examined the account Feb. 11 and found 39 fraudulent transactions.

Police said Karenbauer was the club’s treasurer at the time of the transactions. Bank statements for the club had been mailed to her address since April 2024.

Several of the transactions were linked to online gambling sites, bill payments and retail purchases not related to the team, police said.

Police said Karenbauer sent an email to police May 17, agreeing to reimburse the club.

She told police she had a medical condition that made her “out of it” for an extended period during the time of the transactions. She also said she realized the last four digits of the booster account and her personal account were identical, which caused her to “sometimes use the wrong card,” according to the charging documents.

Karenbauer reimbursed the club in the full amount June 23, police said.

Karenbauer’s preliminary hearing has not yet been scheduled.