TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) – You’re told your donation will send a child with autism to summer camp, only to find out that camp doesn’t exist. And, the woman you gave the money to isn’t who she says she is.
It happened to two Toledo businesses.
The owner of Hindsight Pizza, Chris Hinds, said the woman claimed to be from an Autism Awareness Foundation. She came into his business to tell him about an event she was holding the next day at the trampoline park, GetAir, behind the pizza shop.
Hinds said he gave her a stack of menus with 20% off coupons for attendees to come and get some pizza. He even brought in extra staff to accommodate because the woman claimed there would be thousands of people there.
“She got to talking to me about a boy named David who needed a sponsorship to go to camp this summer,” Hinds said. “It was a $100 sponsorship.”
Hinds said she even showed him pictures of David and told him he would get to meet him at the event. So, he reached into his own pocket and gave her the money for the sponsorship.
The next day, Hinds didn’t see any tents in the parking lot or any events happening. It was at that point he had one of his employees call the trampoline park, he says, the manager didn’t know anything about the event and had never met the woman.
13 Action News reached out to confirm this with the manager of GetAir. A manager said that while they do raise money for autism awareness during the month of April, it’s not through this woman.
The pizza shop isn’t the only business the woman has been asking for money from. She was also caught on camera at Incredibowl Entertainment asking for sponsorships for kids to go to summer camp.
This time she said she was from the Boys and Girls Club.
“They were hosting camps and that they wanted us to sponsor a kid or possibly a family,” said Breanna Whited, the General Manager of Incredibowl.
Whited said the woman told her the kids call her, ‘Counselor Alex.’
She showed staff the same flyer she showed the owner at Hindsight Pizza. Staff at Incredibowl said they spoke with her for nearly half an hour and agreed to give her $300 to sponsor a family in exchange for some marketing opportunities.
Whited said she was very convincing.
“She could’ve sold ice to an Eskimo,” she said.
The woman said she didn’t accept checks but could take cash. She also said that if they came to her event at Planet Fitness the next day she could accept their company credit card. When Whited arrived at the Planet Fitness, there was no event.
13 Action News reached out to the Boys and Girls Club of Toledo, and a spokesperson said this woman is not affiliated with their organization.
Also, when you type in the website listed on the flyer she was giving to people, it doesn’t exist.
“Unfortunately, I don’t think David is going to camp. If there is a David, I hope he does go, but it’s probably not with my $100,” Hinds said.
Both business owners said they did not file a report with Toledo Police but want this to serve as a lesson to do your research before giving money, saying they don’t want to see any other businesses scammed.
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This article was published by WTVG on 2025-04-15 18:45:00
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