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A GoFundMe Scam? Caught in a $400,000 hoax¹ GoFundMe骗局？陷入40万美元的骗局

After a New Jersey² couple make headlines with a crowdfunding campaign for a local homeless man they say helped them, authorities charge all three with inventing the story—for cash 美国新泽西州一对夫妇为当地一名无家可归的男子举办了一场众筹活动，他们声称这名男子帮助了他们。当局指控这三人编造了这个故事——为了钱

It had all the makings of the feel-good story of the year. Kate McClure said that in October 2017 she found herself stranded³ and out of gas while driving to Philadelphia. 它具备了今年让人感觉良好的故事的所有要素。凯特·麦克卢尔(Kate McClure)说，她在2017年10月开车去费城时发现自己被困在车里，没油了。

Stuck on the side of the interstate, she claimed she made it to safety with help from a homeless man named Johnny Bobbitt Jr., who spent his last $20 buying gas for her car. 她声称自己被困在州际公路的一侧，在一个叫小强尼·博比特的流浪汉的帮助下，她安全到达了目的地。他花了自己最后20美元帮她买了汽油。

McClure and her boyfriend Mark D'Amico were so moved by Bobbitt's generosity⁴ that they set up a "Paying It Forward" campaign for him on GoFundMe, the crowdfunding website. 麦克卢尔和她的男友马克·达米科(Mark D' amico)被博比特的慷慨感动了，他们在众筹网站GoFundMe上为波比特发起了一场“提前付钱”的活动。

The campaign went viral, and within weeks 14,000 people—touched by Bobbitt's apparent act of kindness—had donated more than $402,000. 这项活动迅速传播开来，短短几周内，14000人——被博比特明显的善举感动——捐款超过402000美元。

If it all seemed too good to be true, that's because, according to prosecutors⁶, it was. 检察官说，如果这一切都好得令人难以置信，那是因为事实确实如此。

In September troubling questions about where and how the GoFundMe money had been spent prompted a police investigation⁷ that exposed the whole story as a hoax. 今年9月，有关GoFundMe资金的去向和使用方式的令人不安的问题，促使警方展开调查，整个事件曝光，原来是一场骗局。

Last week New Jersey authorities charged D'Amico, McClure and Bobbitt with second-degree theft by deception⁸ and conspiracy⁹, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. 上周，新泽西当局指控达米科、麦克卢尔和博比特犯有二级盗窃罪，罪名是欺骗和阴谋，最高可判10年监禁。

"The entire campaign was predicated on a lie," prosecutor⁵ Scott Coina told reporters. "They put out a story that hoodwinked an awful lot of people." 检察官斯科特·科伊纳对记者说：“整个竞选活动都是建立在谎言的基础上的。”“他们写了一个故事，骗了很多人。”

According to court documents, the trio cooked up the scheme after first meeting in the fall of 2017 near a Philadelphia casino where the 39-year-old D' Amico, a Florence, N.J.-based contractor¹⁰, and McClure, 28, a state employee, were regulars. 法庭文件显示，这三人于2017年秋天在费城一家赌场附近首次会面后，策划了这一计划。39岁的达米科是新泽西弗洛伦斯的承包商，28岁的麦克卢尔是州政府雇员。他们都是这家赌场的常客。

(Bobbitt, a 35-year-old Marine¹¹ Corps¹² veteran who'd been struggling with drug addiction¹³ and living on the streets since 2016, was already on the couple's radar¹⁴ and had once claimed to have helped a stranded motorist.) (35岁的海军陆战队老兵博比特从2016年起就一直在与毒瘾作斗争，生活在街头。他已经成为这对夫妇的关注对象，曾声称帮助过一名受困的司机。)

The trio concocted¹⁵ their story from there. By March roughly $367,000 had been transferred from GoFundMe to McClure's bank account— $75,000 of which Bobbitt said was paid to him in periodic amounts. 三人从那里编造了他们的故事。到3月为止，大约有36.7万美元从GoFundMe转移到麦克卢尔的银行账户，博比特说，其中7.5万美元是定期付给他的。

D'Amico and McClure allegedly burned through the rest on trips and luxury items, including a $20,700 Las Vegas vacation, a $24,400 BMW and $11,400 worth of designer handbags. 据称，达米科和麦克卢尔在旅行和奢侈品上挥霍掉了剩下的钱，其中包括在拉斯维加斯度假花掉2.07万美元、一辆宝马花掉2.44万美元的和名牌手提包花掉1.14万美元。

The couple also spent money putting Bobbitt up in a hotel and buying him an RV camper. 这对夫妇还花钱让博比特住进了一家酒店，还给他买了一辆房车露营车。

Within weeks after the funds transfer, McClure's account was empty, and by August Bobbitt had spent all of his money too and was back living on the streets. 资金转移后的几周内，麦克卢尔的账户就空了，到了8月，博比特也花光了所有的钱，回到了街上。

Angry and desperate, Bobbitt sued D'Amico and McClure for fraud, forcing them to admit in court that the cash was gone—and the jig¹⁷ was up. 愤怒而绝望的博比特起诉达米科和麦克卢尔犯有欺诈罪，迫使他们在法庭上承认钱不见了——于是一切都结束了。

( People's requests for comment were not returned.) In the meantime GoFundMe has pledged to fully¹⁸ refund¹⁹ every donor²⁰, calling the alleged¹⁶ fraud "unacceptable." (《人物杂志》的置评请求没有收到回复。)与此同时，GoFundMe已承诺将全额退还所有捐赠者，并称所谓的欺诈行为“不可接受”。

Added prosecutor Coina: "A case like this can make generous people skeptical²¹ and . . . hesitant to help someone else in need; I urge everyone not to let that happen." 检察官科伊纳补充说：“这样的案件会让慷慨的人产生怀疑，而且……不愿帮助有需要的人；我敦促大家不要让这种情况发生。”

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收听单词发音

1 hoax
v.欺骗，哄骗，愚弄；n.愚弄人，恶作剧
参考例句：
They were the victims of a cruel hoax.他们是一个残忍恶作剧的受害者。 They hoax him out of his money.他们骗去他的钱。

2 jersey
n.运动衫
参考例句：
He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。 They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

3 stranded
a.搁浅的，进退两难的
参考例句：
He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里，身无分文，一筹莫展。 I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

4 generosity
n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为
参考例句：
We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。 We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

5 prosecutor
n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人
参考例句：
The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。 The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

6 prosecutors
检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )；告发人；起诉人；公诉人
参考例句：
In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。来自口语例句 You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

7 investigation
n.调查，调查研究
参考例句：
In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。 He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

8 deception
n.欺骗，欺诈；骗局，诡计
参考例句：
He admitted conspiring to obtain property by deception.他承认曾与人合谋骗取财产。 He was jailed for two years for fraud and deception.他因为诈骗和欺诈入狱服刑两年。

9 conspiracy
n.阴谋，密谋，共谋
参考例句：
The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。 He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

10 contractor
n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌
参考例句：
The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。 The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

11 marine
adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵
参考例句：
Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。 When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

12 corps
n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组
参考例句：
The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。 When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

13 addiction
n.上瘾入迷，嗜好
参考例句：
He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。 Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

14 radar
n.雷达，无线电探测器
参考例句：
They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。 Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

15 concocted
v.将（尤指通常不相配合的）成分混合成某物( concoct的过去式和过去分词 )；调制；编造；捏造
参考例句：
The soup was concocted from up to a dozen different kinds of fish. 这种汤是用多达十几种不同的鱼熬制而成的。 Between them they concocted a letter. 他们共同策划写了一封信。来自《简明英汉词典》

16 alleged
a.被指控的，嫌疑的
参考例句：
It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。 alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

17 jig
n.快步舞（曲）；v.上下晃动；用夹具辅助加工；蹦蹦跳跳
参考例句：
I went mad with joy and danced a little jig.我欣喜若狂，跳了几步吉格舞。 He piped a jig so that we could dance.他用笛子吹奏格舞曲好让我们跳舞。

18 fully
adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地
参考例句：
The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。 They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

19 refund
v.退还，偿还；n.归还，偿还额，退款
参考例句：
They demand a refund on unsatisfactory goods.他们对不满意的货品要求退款。 We'll refund your money if you aren't satisfied.你若不满意，我们愿意退款给你。

20 donor
n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体
参考例句：
In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。 The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

21 skeptical
adj.怀疑的，多疑的
参考例句：
Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。 Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。