Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced that Matthew Dickson, 44, of Dix Hills, and the former Vice President and President of the Dix Hills Soccer Club, pleaded guilty today to Petit Larceny, for embezzling more than $70,000 from the club in 2022.
“This defendant executed a scheme to line his own pockets with funds that were intended to benefit children,” said District Attorney Tierney. “Today’s guilty plea not only holds him accountable for his betrayal of trust, but is also an important step towards making his victims feel whole again as my office required the defendant pay back the full amount of money to the soccer club.”
“Justice has been served for the members of our club and community,” said Dix Hills Soccer Club president Martin Targett. “We are pleased our procedures allowed us to identify the wrongdoing, and we are grateful for the professionalism and collaboration with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.”
According to court documents and the defendant’s admissions during his guilty plea allocution, between April and November 2022, Dickson was responsible for paying the bills associated with the Dix Hills Soccer Club.
During that same period, Dickson held the position of Vice President, and then later, President, of the soccer club. Instead of paying the expenses, Dickson began writing checks to himself and to his corporation from the soccer club’s account without the board of directors’ permission. Further investigation revealed that the defendant collected payments from club members through his personal Venmo account for soccer-related events, but then never deposited into the club’s bank account. Additionally, he failed to reimburse the club for expenses that he charged on the soccer club’s credit card.
On September 6, 2024, Dickson pleaded guilty to Petit Larceny, a Class A misdemeanor, before Supreme Court Justice John B. Collins. Prior to his plea, Dickson was required by prosecutors to pay $76,237 in restitution to the soccer club and write an apology letter to the board of directors. As additional conditions of his plea, Dickson will be required to serve three years of probation and complete over 400 hours of community service.
Dickson is due back in court for sentencing on November 15, 2024, and he is being represented by James Misiano, Esq.
This case is being prosecuted by Adriana Noyola of the Financial Crimes Bureau, and the investigation was conducted by Detective Investigator Daniel Ayrovainen of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office’s Financial Crimes Bureau.#
Criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusatory instruments. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.