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NILES — A former Berrien County Sheriff’s Department officer has been charged with three counts of embezzlement. 

Trent Babcock, a former BCSD lieutenant, was accused of using more than $11,000 in funds from the Niles Wrestling Club – a youth wrestling organization created to allow elementary and middle school wrestlers develop and compete in wrestling tournaments – and has been under investigation by the Niles Police Department since March.

He was charged with three counts of embezzlement of more than $1000 and less than $20,000, a felony charge that carries up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000 or three times the value of the embezzled property.

The police report states that Babcock was a coach with the NWC and was a co-signer for the club’s bank accounts. The detective on the case stated that there were several unexplained transactions made from those accounts that “had nothing to do with the wrestling club” between 2017 and 2022, including cash withdrawals, fuel, purchases of auto parts and equipment rentals totaling $11,514.23. 

Babcock was arraigned Wednesday, April 27 after turning himself in. His charges are still active with a trial date set for August 3.

This is Babcock’s second run-in with police. In 2017, Babcock was found guilty of a third-degree shoplifting charge and was terminated from the force.