Joondalup, Perth woman charged after she allegedly faked cancer to swindle thousands through an online fundraiser – in chilling echo of Belle Gibson case
A Perth woman has been charged over allegations of defrauding hundreds of people around the world out of tens of thousands of dollars by pretending she had cancer.
The 35-year-old, who will appear in the Joondalup Magistrates Court on Friday, faces a fraud charge over the alleged scam, which dates back to 2021.
Following the infamous Belle Gibson case β the author was fined $410,000 by the Federal Court in 2017 for lying about cancer β the WA woman is said to have benefited from a GoFundMe page that raised $36,000 from around 500 people .
She was arrested two weeks ago and police will allege in court that a man created the GoFundMe page for her in March 2021 because she had been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.
It is alleged that the woman later registered herself as a beneficiary of the money raised Western Australian reported.
A Perth woman has been indicted on allegations of defrauding hundreds of people around the world out of tens of thousands of dollars by pretending she had cancer (stock image)
It will also be alleged that the woman appeared in a video on another website to promote the GoFundMe page, claiming the money raised would be used for her medical treatment.
WA Police claim that between March and September 2021, more than 500 people from 16 countries donated more than $37,000 to the GoFundMe page.
Between March and October 2021, the woman is said to have transferred more than $36,000 of the collected money to her own bank account.
βIt will be alleged that the woman has not been diagnosed with the medical condition as alleged in the fundraising account and supporting video,β a police spokesperson said.
It is not alleged that the man who created the GoFundMe page was aware that the woman’s claims were untrue, and he has not been charged with any criminal offence.
For many Australians, the new case has shocking similarities to that of Victorian woman Belle Gibson.
She claimed to have cured her terminal brain cancer with a healthy diet and encouraged others to swap conventional medicine for natural remedies.
Gibson launched an app called The Whole Pantry in 2013 and signed a book deal with Penguin Random House, before it was revealed she had never been diagnosed with cancer.
Seven years after she was fined $410,00, it has reportedly still not been paid due to her enormous personal debts, which with interest may have risen to more than $500,000.
“I haven’t paid anything because I can’t afford it,” she said in a TV program in February.
Belle Gibson (pictured) once claimed she had terminal brain cancer, which could be cured by simply eating healthy food β but it was later discovered she never had the disease
Gibson (pictured) was later fined approximately $410,000 after being found guilty of misleading and deceptive conduct