Seven Farmington Hills parents say they paid thousands of dollars for a competitive cheer program but received basic uniforms and attended only one of six competitions they paid for. No charges or further official action have been independently confirmed.
Two investigators are examining allegations against a Farmington Hills competitive cheer coach. Parents say they paid thousands of dollars for uniforms, competitions, training and fundraisers that were not delivered as promised.
The Farmington Hills Police Department confirmed the assignment after CBS News Detroit gave investigators information for its report. The coach has not been charged with a crime and is not being named. Available search results show no later arrest, criminal charge, court filing or official announcement that the investigation was closed.
The City of Farmington Hills provides municipal information and public-safety contacts through its official city portal. That general resource does not verify the allegations in this article. No police statement beyond the assignment reported by CBS News Detroit was identified in the material reviewed.
Families describe the payments
Seven parents whose children participated in Diamond Cheer All Star Team LLC spoke with CBS News Detroit. Three appeared on camera. They said families paid as much as $800 to join the team. Monthly practice fees reached $80, and a stunt camp cost another $200.
Some uniform and competition payments were made in cash or through Zelle. Monthly tuition went through the coach's online portal.
Online fundraisers brought in more than $3,100, the parents said. With 26 cheerleaders on the roster, families estimated that the program collected thousands of dollars from participating households. Those figures are family estimates. No independent accounting, receipt set or court filing was identified to verify the totals.
The first competition raised concerns. The cheerleaders arrived in T-shirts and athletic skirts instead of the rhinestoned costumes parents believed had been shown to them. Parents said some girls felt uncomfortable competing in the substitute uniforms before large audiences.
Competitions and camp fell short
The families said they paid for six competitions but attended only one. Parents said the coach canceled the other appearances days before the events or on the day of competition. No independent competition ledger or organizer statement confirmed the number of canceled appearances in the available search results.
The stunt camp also differed from what parents expected. They said it had been presented as an event run by a particular company. Someone else conducted it instead.
The company parents identified as the planned camp operator told CBS News Detroit that the coach contacted it but did not complete the arrangements.
The competition told CBS News Detroit that it never received money from Diamond Cheer All Stars LLC. The employee handling rental arrangements at the Farmington Hills church where the team practiced three times a week said the coach owed approximately $1,700 for the space.
The company expected to supply the uniforms could not be reached to confirm whether an order had been placed.
Parents challenged the coach
Jinelle Threatt said her daughter previously participated on a team at East Middle School run by the same coach. Threatt said she questioned the coach about the uniforms. She and her daughter were then removed from the team, she said.
Her daughter stayed home for several days afterward.
Parents said the coach tried to refund $200 to some families. The email accompanying the offer said anyone who accepted the money would have to keep matters involving Diamond Cheer All-Stars, its operations and internal affairs confidential. The recipients would also be barred from discussing those matters in conversation or online.
CBS News Detroit tried to contact the coach by phone, through social media messages, at her home and by letter. She replied by email. After three more emails seeking an interview, she did not explain where the money went.
The Farmington Hills school community has faced separate parent scrutiny over student safety in an earlier report involving Warner Middle School. That matter is separate from the cheer program allegations. Warner Middle School is part of Farmington Public Schools. No school-board record reviewed for this update establishes a connection between the district and the private cheer program.
New team name disputed
Parents told CBS News Detroit that the coach started another team called Phoenix Cheer All Stars LLC. The Michigan Business Registry shows that the company began in May 2026.
A business registration alone does not show that a company accepted payments, delivered services, committed wrongdoing or took on another business's obligations. The State of Michigan registry is the proper place to check a company's legal filing information. No additional filing or enforcement record appeared in the available search results.
Within 24 hours of the report airing, Michelle Desco, owner of Diamond Cheer All Stars LLC in Davisburg, contacted CBS News Detroit. Desco said her business operates as Diamond Athletics - Cheer & Tumble and has no relationship with the gym under investigation.
She said the other gym's nearly identical name led her to send a cease-and-desist before it rebranded as Phoenix.
Desco said Diamond Athletics - Cheer & Tumble has operated for years and has won National and Junior Olympic championship titles. She said families affected by the investigated gym deserve accountability. Those statements describe Desco's business and position. They do not establish what happened to the money paid by the Farmington Hills families.
The Oakland County administration and prosecutor's office were not identified in the available search results as having announced charges, a civil action or another formal proceeding involving the allegations.
That does not prove that no inquiry exists. It means no independently verifiable public update was found at the time of review.
The available evidence shows a gap between what parents say they paid for and what they received. They attended one competition instead of six. The uniforms did not match the expected design. The camp was not run by the anticipated company. A church rental account showed approximately $1,700 in unpaid charges.
Police are reviewing the allegations. Families considering a competitive youth program can ask for written contracts, verifiable vendors and payment records before paying large sums. They can also request itemized invoices, cancellation and refund terms, proof of facility reservations, and the legal name of the business receiving each payment.
