A woman who scammed $400,000 from GoFundMe donors has been sentenced to three years in prison.
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00:00A New Jersey woman has been sentenced to three years in prison for scamming more than $400,000
00:05from GoFundMe donors who thought they were helping a homeless veteran. In 2017,
00:10Kaitlyn McClure claimed she ran out of gas on a highway in Philadelphia. She said that a homeless
00:14man, Johnny Bobbitt Jr., saw her and gave her his last $20 for gas. McClure and her then-boyfriend,
00:20Mark D'Amico, posted about the event on social media and started a GoFundMe campaign to raise
00:25money for Bobbitt to pay it forward. The campaign collected more than 14,000 donations,
00:30totaling near $400,000. However, the then-couple spent that money on a new car,
00:35a gambling trip to Las Vegas, designer handbags, and other luxury items. Bobbitt,
00:39who was in on the scheme, received $75,000 of the donations. He then took civil action
00:45against the two once the scam became public. In 2018, all three were charged. In 2019,
00:51Bobbitt pled guilty and was sentenced to a five-year special probation period.
00:54D'Amico also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years in prison.