COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Authorities have found more than $981,000 in Oregon belonging to a fugitive accused of running a scam that collected millions in donations from people who believed they were helping U.S. Navy veterans.
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine says the U.S. Marshals Service and investigators from his office found more than $981,650 in cash and birth certificates belonging to the fugitive known as Bobby Thompson. He was arrested in Portland, Ore., on Monday and is in federal custody.
Thompson founded the bogus charity United States Navy Veterans Association, believed to have collected nearly $2 million in Ohio and tens of millions from donors in 40 other states since 2001. He had been on the run since 2010.
DeWine says the money, found in storage, “will eventually help with victim restitution.”
