Couple Accused Of Squandering $400,000 GoFundMe Fund For Homeless Veteran Likely To Be Indicted

A New Jersey couple who launched a GoFundMe campaign for a homeless man and allegedly squandered the money raised will likely be indicted, their lawyer has revealed.

The story began in 2017 when homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt Jr. used his money to help a stranded Katelyn McClure get gas when her car ran out of fuel. McClure and her partner Mark D’Amico launched a GoFundMe campaign to repay Bobbitt’s kindness.

A lawsuit now alleges that the couple used the nearly $403,000 they raised for Bobbitt on shopping and lavish vacations. Jacqueline Promislo, Bobbitt’s lawyer, claimed that her client continued to live like a hungry pauper while the couple spent Bobbitt’s funds.

The New York Post reported that a judge ordered the couple to give Bobbitt all the money they raised but Promislo said that there is none left.

The couple’s attorney said that McClure and D’Amico gave Bobbitt $200,000, but the latter pinned the figure to only $75,000 in cash, goods, and services.

D’Amico admitted that he used $500 of the fund at a casino, but claimed that he paid this back. He also said that he won’t give the money to Bobbitt until he is sure that the veteran is drug-free.

D’Amico said that in 2017, Bobbitt spent $25,000 in less than two weeks on drugs, overdue legal bills, and money sent to family. Bobbitt, on his part, claimed that his money is funding the couple a lifestyle that they could not otherwise afford.

Last week, cops with a search warrant went to the couple’s home and seized a BMW, Louis Vuitton bags, jewelry, and other items.

“A search warrant was executed early this morning by the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office and the Florence Township Police Department at the residence of Mark D’Amico and Katelyn McClure in connection with a criminal investigation into the Johnny Bobbitt matter,” said Scott Coffina, Burlington County prosecutor.

On Monday, the couple’s lawyer, Ernest Badway, said that either one or both of them will likely be charged in the case. He also said that his firm would no longer represent the couple.

“Since it is expected that one or both of the Defendants will likely be indicted, my firm and I will no longer be able to continue our representation of them in this matter,” Badway wrote in a petition to Superior Court Judge Paula Dow to pause the civil case.

Dow granted the stay in the civil case, moving the next proceeding to Dec. 7.