"Man arrested in Navy charity scam" Associated Press May 02, 2012
CLEVELAND - A fugitive was arrested on accusations that he
ran a scam that collected millions of dollars in donations from people
who believed they were helping Navy veterans, Ohio’s attorney general
and the US Marshal’s office in Cleveland announced Tuesday.
The man uses the false identify of Bobby Thompson and was indicted in
Ohio in 2010 on theft, money laundering, and other charges related to
the Florida-based charity. He disappeared in June 2010.
Little, if any, of the money collected by the charity was used to benefit veterans, authorities have said.
Authorities
acting on a tip arrested Thompson in Portland, Ore., on Monday night,
said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. He had multiple fake ID cards,
DeWine said.
DeWine said authorities hope to have the man in Ohio in 10 days,
where he will be tried in state court in Cleveland. The alleged fraud
involved $100 million in 41 states, said US Marshal Peter Elliot.
The arrest closes a search dating back several years and involving a Tampa charity known as the US Navy Veterans Association.
The association made a few contributions that benefited veterans, but
public records showed the man behind it contributed hundreds of
thousands of dollars to political candidates around the country, former
Ohio attorney general Richard Cordray said in 2010.
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Related: Father, son indicted in kickbacks case
