These days, it is incredibly rare to hear stories of people getting help from strangers. In a world that is hounded by financial woes, stories of generosity are very heartwarming and let you restore hope for humanity.
Source: Pixabay
But things went a different turn for a couple who helped out a homeless military veteran. This couple was able to raise $400,000 for the homeless man only to be sued later on by the very person they were trying to help.
Meet Katie, Mark, and Johnny
Katie McClure and Mark D’Amico were an ordinary couple from New Jersey. Katie worked as a receptionist for a government agency and Mark worked as a carpenter. You can say that they led a quiet, ordinary life. Until Katie met Johnny Bobbitt.
Source: CreepyWorld
Johnny Bobbitt was a military veteran who was living on the streets. He did not have a job, did not have a home, and had no money to his name. But despite his struggles, he always had a positive outlook.
The selfless act
In November 2017, Katie and Johnny’s paths crossed. Katie had driven to a local gas station to fill up her tank. As she made her way to the cashier to pay for her fill, she realized she did not have any cash on her. Her phone was also dead so she could not call Mark to help her out.
Source: CreepyWorld
Johnny happened to be hanging out at the gas station at that time. He was able to see the whole ordeal and saw how helpless Katie looked. It was then that he offered his last $20 to Katie so that she could go home.
A bond was formed
Katie was at a loss for words. She was overwhelmed that the homeless man would be willing to sacrifice for her, a total stranger. Katie thanked Johnny and promised she would be back to repay this generous favor.
Source: CreepyWorld
And Katie stayed true to her word. She did not only pay back the $20 but she also made it a habit to visit Johnny’s spot near the gas station with food and water. During these visits, she got to learn more about him and admired his positivity despite his circumstances.
The GoFundMe page
Katie and Mark were so amazed by Johnny’s kindness and positivity that they decided they wanted to help him rise above his predicament. So, the couple created a GoFundMe page for Johnny in the hopes that his story would touch other people’s hearts as well.
Source: CreepyWorld
They were hoping to raise enough money to get him off the streets and help him rebuild a new start for himself. They initially set the goal to $10,000 but they had no idea how their plan would become such a huge success.
Going viral
Before they knew it, their story went viral. People around the world felt touched by Johnny’s sacrifice and wanted to help him out. Local and national news picked up on the story and soon, the three were invited to numerous talk shows on TV.
Source: CreepyWorld
And all the exposure helped. As the weeks went by, the donations kept pouring in. They were able to surpass the $10,000 goal and in just nine months, they were able to reach $400,000. The fundraising was a huge success.
A financial choice
But there was a slight problem. Johnny does not have any documents and he does not have a bank account. It would take some time to have everything processed. There was no place to deposit the money that Katie and Mark had raised.
Source: CreepyWorld
But the couple and Johnny wanted to start working on Johnny’s new beginning. Because of this, the couple decided to deposit the money in their own bank account temporarily while Johnny’s documents were being sorted out.
A simple dream
Now that the money was in the couple’s bank account, they will be able to withdraw it and give it to Johnny. Katie and Mark sat down with Johnny to discuss his hopes and dreams. How would he like to spend the money?
Source: CreepyWorld
It turned out that Johnny had a simple goal. He wanted to buy a trailer, move to Alaska, and live off the land. He did not want anything fancy. Johnny just wanted to fish and be able to sleep in a warm place every night.
Over the moon
Katie and Mark took Johnny to a local dealership and let him choose a trailer. When the purchase was made, Johnny was over the moon to finally have something that was truly his. He finally had something he can call his own.
Source: CreepyWorld
But then, he had to find a place where he could park the trailer legally. The couple then offered Johnny to park the trailer on their property. He was also allowed to use the facilities in their home. Were there any limits to this couple’s generosity?
He was like family
Katie and Mark had been very generous towards Johnny. They gave him a makeover, made sure he had clean clothes and treated him like family. They invited him to their home during special occasions and made sure he had everything he needed.
Source: CreepyWorld
The couple made sure to give updates so that the donors could see that Johnny was being cared for. It was clear to see that with the help of Katie and Mark, Johnny was in a much better place than he was months ago in the streets.
A disappointing turn of events
After a couple of weeks, Johnny’s documents were finally processed and he was able to open his own bank account. Katie and Mark deposited $25,000 into that account for him to use. But they were surprised to find that the money had disappeared within two weeks.
Source: CreepyWorld
It was later discovered that Johnny spent all the money on illegal substances. He had wasted all the money away and Katie and Mark were disappointed. They tried to persuade Johnny to get help through rehabilitation but Johnny refused.
Does he deserve the money?
Because of this incident, Katie and Marc did not know what to do with the rest of Johnny’s money. They surely did not want it to go to waste. They feared that if they gave the money to Johnny, he would just be headed for more trouble.
Source: CreepyWorld
Johnny did not like the fact that Katie and Marc were holding back the money from him. For him, the money raised was rightfully his so he should be able to decide what to do with it. The fact that they were keeping it from him made Johnny mad.
A lavish lifestyle
Soon enough, Johnny became suspicious. He realized that Katie and Marc were able to go on expensive vacations and even bought a brand new BMW car. Johnny started to wonder if the couple was using his money from the GoFundMe fundraiser to fund their new lavish lifestyle.
Source: CreepyWorld
When Johnny confronted the couple, Katie and Marc denied his accusations. They told him that they had already spent $200,000 on Johnny. The money was spent on Johnny’s stay in a hotel, the trailer, a laptop, a cellphone, processing his documents, and his makeover and clothes. They said that all the expenses can be tracked.
He fights back
The couple also told Johnny that GoFundMe takes a cut from every fundraiser. The cut for Johnny’s fundraiser was $30,000. So, basically, Johnny still had $150,000 left. Johnny could not believe that he is left with such a small portion of the money raised. He became more convinced that Katie and Mark had tampered with the donations.
Source: Pixabay
Behind the couple’s back, Johnny contacted GoFundMe. He explained his ordeal and the company wanted to help him get his money. They were able to find a lawyer who can work with Johnny pro bono. Soon enough, Johnny was ready to go to court and prove that his money was mismanaged by the couple who helped him out.
Greed takes over
Katie and Mark were shocked. All they wanted to do was help a homeless man and this was what they got back in return. The couple maintained that they had been honest and true the whole time and they were willing to let investigators track down the money and expenses to prove their innocence.
Source: CreepyWorld
Although Johnny was working against the couple this time, he did admit that he does not believe that everything started out with bad intentions. Johnny believed that Katie and Mark really did want to help him at first. But when they saw how much money was raised, greed had taken over.
A public fallout
It can be recalled that Johnny was staying in the couple’s property. With all the issues going on, the couple had no choice but to ask Johnny to leave their property. It seemed that the issue about the money had permanently put a strain on their wonderful friendship.
Source: CreepyWorld
By August 2018, Johnny and his legal team took the case to court. There were a lot of mixed reactions to this case. When the couple started the GoFundMe page and the story went viral, they had a lot of media exposure. So this case also was a matter of public interest.
Was he ungrateful?
Some people had pointed out that without Katie and Mark’s proactivity, Johnny would not have any money at all. If Katie and Mark had not campaigned in their social media accounts, people around the world would not have heard his story and would not donate the money. They think it was Johnny who got greedy and that greed had made him forget the gratitude he owed the couple.
Source: CreepyWorld
People following the case also pointed out that Johnny had spent $25,000 on illegal substances. It was a clear misuse of the donations that the people had sent for Johnny. They felt that Johnny did not deserve having all the money if he was just going to squander it on things that would ruin his life.
An attempt to take it out of the courts
While the legal battle was going on, Mark sent Johnny a text, proposing a more peaceful settlement. Mark proposed that they both take it out of court and the couple will write Johnny a check for all the money left out of the donation.
Source: CreepyWorld
Mark added that he did not want to bad mouth Johnny but the court proceedings are forcing him to do so. Mark also pointed out that after all the court proceedings, Johnny would be left with less money. But Johnny ignored Mark’s plea.
The legal battle
Johnny and his legal team fought for the fact that the GoFundMe donors made a conscious decision to donate money for Johnny, and because of it, the money rightfully belongs to Johnny. Katie and Mark were playing the moral high ground card pointing out that Johnny was not using the money as initially intended.
Source: CreepyWorld
Katie and Mark maintained their stand that they were innocent. But the judge ruled against the couple. The couple was not charged with any misdemeanor but they were ordered to hand over the money they owed. The money would be kept in a controlled account by Johnny’s lawyers.
From heartwarming to heartbreaking
Although Johnny would need proper authorization to get money from his bank account, he was still relieved knowing that the money is truly his. He can live off the money that so many people generously dated and had voiced his intentions to make a better life.
Source: CreepyWorld
What started off as a heartwarming story that inspired the world ended in a battle over money. All Katie and Mark wanted to do were help Johnny start over. But when they found out that Johnny was misspending the money, they just questioned whether all the money would be put to waste on his addiction.
It was a scam
The court hearing is not the end of this story. A month after, the police raided the couple’s home with a search warrant. It turned out that the couple was not the good Samaritans that they painted out to be. And Johnny was not the innocent victim after all.
Source: Fox News
Remember the investigation about tracking the couple’s expenses? The investigators from Johnny’s case were able to find more than what they were searching for. It turned out that the three had staged everything from the very start.
The truth revealed
Recovered text messages had shown how Mark and Katie came up with the plan and how they let Johnny into the scheme. They were able to prove that Katie and Mark spent the donated cash to go on gambling trips to Atlantic City and Las Vegas, vacations to Disney World and Disney Land, a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon, designer handbags and clothes, and the brand new BMW.
Source: CreepyWorld
The truth was that the couple did encounter Johnny outside the SugarHouse Casino. They were truly interested in helping him out. They created the GoFundMe page and made up the gas story to win sympathy. The three were able to get $400,000 thanks to their appearances on national television.
All about the money
Johnny felt that he did not have a fair cut out of the scam. He claimed he only had $75,000 out of the $400,000 that was raised. The couple still maintained that they gave him $200,000. If Johnny did not take it to court, the three could have gotten away with their GoFundMe scam and duped the thousands of people who donated for Johnny.
Source: Fox News
Katie and Johnny later pled guilty to participating in the scam. Mark, who was pointed as the mastermind, pled guilty to misapplication of entrusted property. Mark and Johnny are facing five years in prison while Katie is facing four years in prison. All three must repay the money they had spent.
A lesson learned
GoFundMe promised to repay all of the donors who gave money in the 2017 Pay it Forward campaign for Johnny after it was revealed that everything had been a scam. More than 14,000 people had donated towards the campaign after their story went viral and became a topic on national news and having exposure from different talk shows.
Source: CreepyWorld
Although we could not blame people who want to help a military veteran stay off the streets. After all, veterans have sacrificed a lot for the freedom we enjoy. This just goes to show that not everything we see in social media is true. Before buying into a sob story for donations, it is smart to investigate things further.