Online fundraising website GoFundMe says that it has returned over $400,000 in donations for a cause that prosecutors allege was a scam.
“All donors who contributed to this GoFundMe campaign have been fully refunded,” said GoFundMe spokesman Bobby Whithorne, adding that GoFundMe was assisting law enforcement and working to recover the withdrawn funds.
Last month, NBC News obtained a court filing accusing a New Jersey couple, Mark D’Amico and Kate McClure, of creating a false campaign along with Johnny Bobbitt Jr., a Marine veteran.
{mosads}The filing alleged that the three wrote a fictitious story in order trick people into making donations, saying that Bobbit was a homeless veteran who gave his last $20 to help McClure when her car ran out of gas.
The story went viral, and the couple raised more than $402,000 from 14,000 people through GoFundMe. Bobbitt went on to accuse D’Amico and McClure of withholding the funds from him and using them as a “personal piggy bank” to bankroll a fancy car and luxury vacations.
But prosecutors say the three conspired to make up the story together. Last month, the three were charged with second-degree theft by deception and conspiracy to commit theft by deception.
Now, GoFundMe says it has refunded the donations.