It is alleged that the overwhelming majority of consumers’ donations benefited only the perpetrators, their families and friends, and professional fundraisers who often received 85 percent or more of every donation.
Four sham cancer charities and their operators were charged with bilking more than $187 million from consumers as part of a nationwide scam, announced South Carolina Secretary of State Mark Hammond and state law enforcement partners and the Federal Trade Commission.
The multistate action represents one of the largest such cases in charity enforcement history.
Cancer Fund of America Inc., Cancer Support Services Inc., Children’s Cancer Fund of America Inc. and The Breast Cancer Society Inc. were named in the complaint.
Settlements with defendants Children’s Cancer Fund of America and The Breast Cancer Society were filed concurrently with the complaint.
Litigation will proceed against Cancer Fund of America and Cancer Support Services.
The complaint alleges that the defendants falsely portrayed themselves as legitimate charities with substantial programs that provided direct support to cancer patients in the U.S., and falsely promised to provide patients with pain medication, transportation to chemotherapy, and hospice care, among other things.
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