The treasurer of the Wicomico High School Band Boosters was charged last week with stealing $15,085 from the organization account she oversaw, the county Sheriff’s Office said.

Brooke Amber Cook, 31, of Salisbury, was charged with engaging in a theft scheme, embezzlement and misappropriation of funds, and nine counts of theft, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Cook was implicated after school administration notified the Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division that money was missing from the Band Boosters account.

In a statement released by the Board of Education, officials said Cook was not an employee of the school system and student-support groups such as the Band Boosters are independent and separate organizations.

“They are not under the authority of the school or school system, and maintain their own bank account for the funds that are raised to support students in the school program – in this case the band program,” the statement read.

Investigators accused Cook of taking funds from December 2021 to June 2022 to purchase personal items and pay a variety of personal bills.

Cook was served with a criminal summons Aug. 16, but was not taken into custody.

A preliminary hearing for Cook has been scheduled Sept. 15.