Noah Pozner’s ‘Aunt’ Pleads Guilty To Sandy Hook Scam
A Bronx, N.Y. woman who attempted to collect donations to Sandy Hook families following the Newtown school shooting has pleaded guilty.
Nouel Alba pleaded guilty on Thursday to charges that she fraudulently collected donations under the guise of charity for the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December.
The 37-year-old entered her plea in Bridgeport Federal Court on Thursday afternoon.
On the day of the shooting, Alba set up a Facebook page to collect donations for the victims of the horrific shooting.
She claimed to be the aunt of 6-year-old Noah Pozner, a victim who emerged quickly as “the face” of the shooting in several media publications.
In the confusion, people started donating to her page, which she said would help pay for the boy’s funeral expenses.
A day later, Alba sent an email to the Sandy Hook PTA also asking for donations.
She was indicted in May after her scam was exposed by CNN‘s Anderson Cooper.
Federal investigators said that she returned the money donated in the name of Sandy Hook victims, but declined to reveal how much money she had managed to collect.
On Thursday, she admitted that she is not related to Pozner in any way and admitted to her scheme. She accepted a plea deal that would give her up to six months in jail. She could have faced five years in prison and $250,000 in fines if convicted without the plea. The charges of wire fraud and making a false statement carry a maximum of 25 years in prison.
She’ll be sentenced on August 29.
What do you think should happen to Nouel Alba, the woman who fraudulently collected Sandy Hook donations while posing as Noah Pozner’s aunt? Sound off!
