Category: Phony Vet Charities

You guys recall the story of a good Samaritan who aided a woman. In a show of appreciation, she started a GoFundMe campaign for the man, who could’ve used the donation as a springboard back to normalcy. Instead of using the funds to do what they claimed they’d do; however, the fund starters went on a spending spree.

Here’s the latest from the Associated Press:

MOUNT HOLLY, N.J. (AP) — GoFundMe says it has refunded everyone who contributed to a campaign involving a homeless veteran from Philadelphia who prosecutors allege schemed with a New Jersey couple to scam donors out of more than $400,000.

GoFundMe spokesman Bobby Whithorne said Tuesday that “all donors who contributed to this GoFundMe campaign have been fully refunded” and the organization is cooperating fully with law enforcement.

Burlington County prosecutors allege in a criminal complaint that Johnny Bobbitt conspired with Katelyn McClure and her boyfriend at the time, Mark D’Amico, to concoct a feel-good story about Bobbitt giving McClure his last $20 when her car ran out of gas. They raised $400,000, which authorities say was spent on luxury items and casino trips.

Whithorne said campaigns involving misuse “make up less than one tenth of one percent” of all GoFundMe campaigns, but such behavior “is unacceptable” and “has consequences.”

“We have a zero tolerance policy for fraudulent behavior,” he said. “If fraud occurs, donors get refunded and we work with law enforcement officials to recover the money.”

McClure has alleged through her lawyer that D’Amico duped her. His lawyer has denied the allegations. Prosecutors released texts from McClure including one sent right after the GoFundMe page was set up in which they allege she told a friend that the “gas part is completely made up.”

Prosecutors began investigating last summer after Bobbitt said he wasn’t getting money raised on his behalf. He later sued the couple.

The link to the article is here.

The Federal Trade Commission has launched an effort to combat the scourge of phony veterans’ charities. Named “Operation Donate with Honor”, the task force is made of law enforcement officials and charity regulators from 70 offices across the country and, together, they’ve shuttered more than a hundred of these phony charities;

“Americans are grateful for the sacrifices made by those who serve in the U.S. armed forces,” said FTC Chairman Joe Simons. “Sadly, some con artists prey on that gratitude, using lies and deception to line their own pockets. In the process, they harm not only well-meaning donors, but also the many legitimate charities that actually do great work on behalf of veterans and servicemembers.”

The FTC planned this ongoing effort with the National Association of State Charity Officials (NASCO). The initiative includes an education campaign, in English and Spanish, to help consumers recognize charitable solicitation fraud and identify legitimate charities.

From Forbes;

In one action, the FTC and five states forced Help the Vets agree to stop asking for money.

The bogus charity which also operated under the names American Disabled Veterans Foundation, Military Families of America, Veterans Emergency Blood Bank, Vets Fighting Breast Cancer, and Veterans Fighting Breast Cancer claimed donations would go to veteran medical care.

The scamster also falsely claimed a “gold” rating by GuideStar, which provides information about nonprofits.

Another FTC action succeeded in getting a temporary restraining order against Travis Deloy Patterson who used fake veterans’ charities and illegal robocalls to get people to donate cars, boats and other things of value, which he then sold for his own benefit.

Like with Help the Vets, this pretend charity operated under a variety of aliases: including Veterans of America, Vehicles for Veterans LLC, Saving Our Soldiers, Donate Your Car, Donate That Car LLC, Act of Valor, and Medal of Honor.

Charity Watch determined that “Help the Vets” spent a paltry 6% of their donations that were actually going to help veterans. The rest went to salaries and fund raising.

The FTC is launching a public education initiative to counter this scourge.

Jose Pazos confronted some panhandlers in Miami when the former Marine saw them in Army uniforms representing the organization that calls themselves Veterans and Patriots Citadel Incorporated. According to the NBC affiliate, their license to solicit has been suspended by the State of Florida;

The Florida Department of Agriculture suspended the authority for Veterans and Patriots Citadel Incorporated to collect donations as a charity on the day of the incident.

Veterans and Patriots Citadel Incorporated told NBC 6 that it was the state’s fault their license was suspended, but Florida said the group did not file the correct paperwork to keep its license.

From Local 10 News;

Pazos, who served two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, said he confronted the two men after he witnessed them collecting donations in full uniform at Bird Road and Southwest 67th Avenue in southwest Miami-Dade County.

“I am 99.9 percent sure these guys are scam artists,” Pazos said.

Pazos confronted the two men last week when he spotted them when he was on his way to work.

“They’re not doing anything for veterans and that’s what infuriated me,” Pazos said.