Wallingford woman charged with stealing thousands from Delco cheerleading group will enter rehabilitation program

A Wallingford woman charged with stealing more than $18,000 from a local cheerleading group will enter into a rehabilitation program for first-time offenders under an agreement reached by the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office and the woman’s lawyer.

Amanda B. Coschignano, 45, was ordered on Sept. 2 by Judge Kevin Kelly to attend the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program for six months and repay the $18,944.98 she was charged with stealing from the Delco Storm, a youth recreational cheerleading team for which she was the treasurer.

Coschignano has since paid full restitution of the stolen funds.

Coschignano was charged in August 2024 with theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property, theft by failure to make required dispensation of funds, and access device fraud, all third-degree felony charges.

According to an affidavit of probable cause, Delco Storm owner Kelly McCluskey contacted the Upper Providence Police Department on March 13, 2024, to report a theft. McCluskey told law enforcement that she had noticed discrepancies in transfers of money from the Delco Storm’s bank account to Coschignano’s Venmo account. Coschignano was the treasurer and record keeper for the Delco Storm at the time.

With the permission of McCluskey, Coschignano had been using her personal Venmo account to collect registration fees and other payments with the understanding that the funds would be transferred into the Delco Storm’s bank account. Coschignano and McCluskey were the only people who had access to the bank account, according to the affidavit.

During a meeting with Upper Providence Detective-Sergeant George Moore, the affidavit stated, Coschignano produced bank records from the five years she was in charge of the Delco Storm’s finances.

After conducting analysis of the Delco Storm’s bank account, as well as of Coschignano’s personal Venmo account through a search warrant, law enforcement officials said in the affidavit that Coschignano had stolen $18,944.98 from the Delco Storm, transferring money into her Venmo account and spending funds on personal items.

Coschignano also collected what is believed to be an additional tens of thousands of dollars in cash for the Delco Storm over the course of five years, according to the affidavit, but that amount was unable to be calculated due to her “poor records keeping.”

An attorney for Coschignano could not immediately be reached for comment.

McCluskey said that while she was “really, really happy that we are getting close to $19,000 back,” she feels Coschignano received “a slap on the wrist” given the amount of money she was charged with stealing.

McCluskey said the organization had to raise its fees and increase fundraising last year to make up for the missing money.

“We really try hard to keep our fees low. Cheerleading can be such an expensive sport,” McCluskey said.

Coschignano will participate in Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition for six months and will pay $40 each month to attend the program.

The Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program is designed to rehabilitate low-level offenders and eliminate the need for costly and time-consuming court proceedings, according to the Delaware County District Attorney’s office. The program is available to certain defendants, typically first-time offenders who are considered unlikely to commit another crime. Completion of Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition offers an opportunity for dismissal and potential expungement of charges from a participant’s criminal record.

This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.