Harris County Precinct One Constable Alan Rosen is warning the public to be vigilant against scams following the recent flooding in the Texas Hill Country.
Constable Rosen said that scammers are taking advantage of the tragedy, including a case where someone impersonated the father of Houston flood victim Chloe Childress and set up a fake GoFundMe page. Precinct One detectives quickly contacted GoFundMe, and the fraudulent fundraiser was shut down within minutes.
“These families are all enduring the saddest tragedies of their lives, and to do this is just soulless,” Rosen said. “We are not going to tolerate these imposters harming families and exploiting the goodwill of our community.”
Detectives are investigating the incident for possible charges including forgery and online impersonation. The fake fundraiser had received about $1,500 in donations before it was taken down. Investigators are also looking into whether one of the donors may have been involved in the scam to make the fundraiser appear legitimate.
Constable Rosen encourages the public to be cautious and to consult GoFundMe’s safety tips to avoid falling victim to fraudulent campaigns.
A GoFundMe spokesperson issued the following statement to KPRC 2 in response to the incident:
“GoFundMe has zero tolerance for the misuse of our platform or any attempt to exploit the generosity of others, and we work closely with law enforcement to investigate those accused of wrongdoing. Our Trust & Safety team is actively monitoring and reviewing all fundraisers related to the flooding in Texas. In this case, the fundraiser in question was promptly removed, the associated account permanently banned, and all donations fully refunded. At no point did the organizer have access to any of the funds. We have robust systems in place that allow anyone to report a fundraiser at any time. Each report is promptly reviewed, and appropriate action is taken as part of our commitment to donor and community safety. All verified fundraisers related to the Texas floods can be found on our centralized hub:gofundme.com/TexasFloods.”
More information on how to spot and report scams can be found at GoFundMe’s fraud prevention page.
“One of our community’s greatest hallmarks is our ability to come together to help in time of need,” Rosen said. “We want folks to be careful and avoid being scammed.”