A woman raised $43,000 for victims of Australian bushfires. Police say she gave $12.80 to charity and spent the rest on hair extensions, a treadmill, and a rug.
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- A woman raised more than $40,000 from donors, claiming it was for victims of the 2020 Australian bushfires.
- But she only donated a tiny fraction of the money raised to charity — $12.80, police said.
- She told police she spent the money on things like hair extensions, a treadmill, and a new rug.
A woman raised more than $40,000 from online donors on the pretext it was for victims of Australian bushfires, but ended up spending the vast majority of the money on herself, police said.
Cambridgeshire Constabulary in the UK said in a news release that Kerry Palin, 27, set up an equestrian-themed auction on Facebook in 2020 to fundraise for wildlife victims.
The devastating bushfires, which peaked between December 2019 and January 2020, displaced or killed an estimated three billion animals.
At the time, Palin was living in Peterborough, England.
More than 300 people donated goods to be sold, police said, adding that members of the 7,000-strong Facebook group bid on these items and sent the money directly to Palin via a bank transfer or PayPal.
She raised about £34,000, or $43,302, Cambridgeshire Constabulary said.
But out of the money raised, Palin only made a handful of nominal donations to four separate charities, making payments equivalent to $3.20 in US currency to each.
Her donations amounted to $20 AUD, or $12.80 in US money, a tiny fraction of the total raised, police said.
Palin then edited screenshots of the receipts to make it look like she'd contributed more money than she actually had, Cambridge Constabulary said.
When donors questioned her, she blocked them, according to police.
But she was increasingly challenged by donors, and had issues with her PayPal due to the large sums of money being transferred in, Cambridgeshire Constabulary said.
Facing mounting pressure, Palin contacted the police herself and said she had spent some of the money on items such as a treadmill, hair extensions, and a new rug, police said.
Palin later pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation, concealing criminal property, and acquiring criminal property.
On Friday, she was sentenced to one year and four months in prison.
"Instead of helping the desperate victims of these horrific events, the money was spent on frivolous and unnecessary luxuries," Sam Dane, a police constable, said in the news release, adding: "I hope this goes to show how seriously we take these offenses and I am glad justice has been done."