Couple That Raised $400,000 In Homeless Veteran's Name Spent The Money On Themselves And Are Now Facing Legal Action

September 1. 2018

Kate McClure and Johnny Bobbitt Jr

Homeless veteran and former firefighter Johnny Bobbitt Jr gave Kate McClure his last $20 to buy gas for her car in Philadelphia. She decided to start a Go Fund Me page to raise money for him as a way of repaying his kindness. The public was so touched by the story which made its way onto news sites, raising $400,000 through Go Fund Me for Bobbitt Jr.

Instead of turning the money over to Bobbitt Jr, McClure and her boyfriend Mark D'Amico spent a substantial portion of the funds on luxury items for themselves, such as a BMW. Faced with public backlash, McClure is now complaining the bad publicity could get her fired. A law firm has also taken Bobbitt Jr's case and convinced a judge to order the couple to turn over the remaining $150,000. They should be forced to turn over the BMW and other goods they bought with the money.

It was complete and utter fraud to use a homeless veteran's name to raise huge sums of money then spend it on themselves. It has shaken the public's faith in humanity. The public gave the money to help a homeless veteran and former firefighter get an apartment and a job, not for the couple using his plight, to buy a BMW. Go Fund Me is also a website people have used to successfully raise money for medical care. They didn't need a story like this attached to their site, when these acts were perpetrated by third parties.

STORY SOURCE

Couple who raised £300k for homeless man given 24 hours to hand over all the money

10 hours ago  - A couple who raised $400,000 (£308,000) for a homeless veteran have been given 24 hours to hand over all the money after he accused them of pocketing the donations. Kate McClure, 28, launched the fundraising drive to help Johnny Bobbitt Jr after he gave her “his last $20” so she could buy petrol.

She and her boyfriend Mark D’Amico, 35, said on a GoFundMe page they wanted to find Mr Bobbitt, 34, an apartment and a job. But Mr Bobbitt, a former soldier and firefighter from North Carolina, this week sued the couple, claiming he did not get the full amount. He said the couple bought him a camper van, which he lived in on the drive of their New Jersey home, and a used car, but nothing else.

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