MOUNT HOLLY, N.J. – A New Jersey woman who took part in a scam to dupe thousands of people hoping to help a homeless veteran, has received a three-year prison term for state charges arising from the fraud.
Katelyn McClure, a former state Department of Transportation worker, also is barred from ever holding another position as a public employee, the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office said.
Prosecutors said McClure and her then-boyfriend, Mark D’Amico, concocted a good Samaritan story in November 2017, claiming that homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt Jr. had given his last $20 to McClure when her car ran out of gas in Philadelphia.
The couple launched a GoFundMe campaign, ostensibly collecting money to help Bobbitt get his life in order. The campaign, which featured a photo of McClure, D’Amico and Bobbitt outside a gas station, went viral and some 14,000 donors contributed $402,000.
