Pleasant City woman charged after taking donations for a child she claimed had cancer
NOBLE COUNTY ? A Pleasant City woman has been charged with theft by deception, a fourth-degree felony, after accepting donations on behalf of a child who supposedly had cancer.
Pamela Reed, 41, told authorities she exaggerated and fabricated a child's medical conditions to receive monetary donations, according to the Noble County Sheriff's Office.
The sheriff's office said it and the Noble County Children's Services received information on Jan. 4 about a child who has been publicly portrayed to be fighting cancer.
An investigation conducted by Sheriff Jason Mackie, his staff and children's services revealed the child did not have cancer.
Reed was arrested on Monday. Several area organizations participated in fundraising efforts and had made monetary contributions to offset medical expenses. One organization donated $8,000.
A GoFundMe account established on Sept. 2 has raised $2,184. The organizer of the account was seeking $5,000. The last donations were made two months ago.
Reed's social media posts promoted the fundraisers and sought donations. Her last post, made at 9:37 p.m. Jan. 6, stated another 10 weeks of treatment for the child would begin on the following day.
On Sept. 24, Reed made a post summarizing the child's illness. It stated bruises on the 1-year-old lead to a diagnosis of pre-leukemia cells. In 2018, the age of 2, the child had two bone marrow transplants, according to the post; and after the transplants failed, she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and later with brain tumors. She also stated the child has stage 4 kidney disease, is considered legally blind in her right eye and has major scarring on the left eye.
Bond has been set at $50,000 for Reed. Sheriff Mackie and Misty Wells, director of Department of Job and Family Services, released a joint statement on the case: “We are extremely proud of the Children’s Services staff along with law enforcement collaborative efforts to quickly act for safety these children. Child abuse and neglect isn't always cut and dry, cookie cutter scenarios. If you as a professional or as a member of our community feel like something just isn’t quite right, don't hesitate, make the report. The grit and devotion of this team is inspiring.”If you or an organization you are involved with have been a victim in this case please contact the contact the Noble County Sheriff’s office at 740-7325631.
The Better Business Bureau provides general tips on how to avoid scams on social media. This one deals with Meta (Facebook):As one of the most widely used social media platforms, scammers turn to Facebook to carry out a range of schemes. While some focus primarily on fraudulent purchases using Facebook Marketplace or community buy-and-sell groups, other scams rely on using compromised accounts to reach out to a network of friends and family. When an account is compromised, a scammer may use it to ask Facebook friends for money due to a fabricated emergency, provide a fake investment opportunity, or have them follow a link that will compromise their own accounts. Other schemes repurpose stolen pictures of disasters or are taken out of context, asking for donations by relying on the goodness of strangers and their emotional reactions to a fabricated situation.Facebook users are also encouraged to be mindful of the information they provide while answering popular social media quizzes and consider what the company creating the quiz does with the information provided. Take a moment to review what permissions and information you are granting a website to get from your account if you are asked to link your account when sharing results from a quiz.
Report Facebook scams to the platform to help prevent these tactics from being used.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Jeffersonian: Pleasant City woman faces theft charge after claiming child has cancer
