The former president of a not-for-profit youth sports club that partners with Cooper City is facing felony fraud and theft charges related to how he managed the club’s finances, court records show.
Herminio Molina, 57, of Cooper City, was arrested Sunday on one count of grand theft of over $10,000 and less than $20,000 and one count of organized scheme to defraud, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Broward Sheriff’s deputies began investigating Molina, who was the president of the Cooper City Optimist Club, in January after Parks and Recreation Maintenance Supervisor Jonathan Pares reported that Molina had allegedly rented out a city-owned soccer field for $200 when he was not authorized, the affidavit said.
After the investigation began, deputies received “numerous anonymous allegations” that Molina had misused his position as the club’s president to embezzle money from the program, according to the affidavit. In total, Molina is accused of fraudulently obtaining more than $13,000.
The Cooper City Optimist club is a private, not-for-profit organization and does not have ownership of the city’s sports fields. Molina rented the soccer field to someone, who is not identified in the affidavit, in December for $200. The money was deposited into Molina’s Zelle account, the affidavit said.
Two days after deputies interviewed the person who rented the field, Molina dropped off $200 in cash to Parks and Recreation Assistant Director Joshua Rhodes for the rental, the affidavit said. Molina allegedly told the city employee that the payment was late because he was on vacation and had forgot because of the holidays.
Rhodes told deputies that he is the only person who rents the city’s fields, and payments are supposed to be made directly to the city. Molina had asked Rhodes to tell the investigating deputies that Molina was authorized to take money for the field rental through Zelle, but Rhodes said in a sworn statement that he did not agree, the affidavit said.
The Sheriff’s Office met with the club’s treasurer after learning of further allegations against Molina and issued subpoenas to Molina’s financial accounts, including his Zelle. Detectives found numerous transactions with his personal Bank of America account that were related to the club, the affidavit said.
Financial records showed that Soccer Capacities LLC, a sponsor of the Cooper City Optimist Club, gave Molina a total donation of $7,700 last year through Zelle to pay for 10 welded metal boxes, according to the affidavit. Molina contracted with a company to construct them and paid using his personal credit card.
Molina then requested reimbursement from the club for the full total, and Molina did not return any amount to the company that had donated the $7,700 after he was reimbursed, the affidavit said.
The club’s treasurer in emails with Molina about the reimbursement questioned why he used his personal credit card to pay for the boxes, according to the affidavit. Molina allegedly said he “wanted to earn points on his credit card for the large purchase.”
The club’s treasurer told deputies in a sworn statement that he did not know that Soccer Capacities LLC had made a donation for the metal boxes and that he had sent two separate payments to Molina’s bank account, the affidavit said.
The investigation found that two companies donated to the club in July 2024 and October 2024 for a total of $2,000. The donations weren’t turned over to the club until Jan. 17, more than a week after Molina learned he was under investigation, according to the affidavit.
Molina’s personal Zelle records showed he also received payments from the club’s five concession stands at the city’s sports fields, totaling more than $3,300 from September 2024 to early January, the affidavit said. Molina wrote a check for just under $300 to the club’s account in December, after learning of the Sheriff’s Office investigation.
Attorney information was not available Tuesday afternoon. Molina had been released from jail after posting bail.
The city said in a statement Tuesday: “The allegations against Mr. Molina are serious, and City staff has cooperated, and will continue to cooperate, with authorities throughout the ongoing investigation. As part of a continued commitment to transparency and accountability, the City is actively reviewing all applicable policies and procedures related to the use and rental of City fields and facilities.”