Judge orders couple who started fundraiser for homeless man to hand over money after they allegedly use funds for flights, gambling

A New Jersey judge ordered a couple on Thursday, accused of spending money meant for a homeless man, to give the remaining funds to him.

NBC reports that Katie McClure and boyfriend, Mark D’Amico, must turn over the money left over from the donations raised last year for Johnny Bobbitt, 35, a homeless man who assisted the couple after he gave them his last $20 when they ran out of gas on the I-95 freeway in Kensington, Pennsylvania.

McClure and her boyfriend started a fundraising campaign for the homeless man shortly after the incident, which reached around $400,000. Yet, Bobbit said he never saw most of the money meant for him.

“He will never have to worry about a roof over his head again!!” the couple posted on GoFundMe last November.

The judgement came after Bobbit sued the pair, claiming that they mismanaged the money. Bobbit’s lawsuit sought an unspecified amount, indicating the defendants committed fraud when they used money from the GoFundMe account for themselves.

As CrimeOnline previously reported, McClure, a receptionist for New Jersey Department of Transportation, reportedly bought a new BMW and took several trips to different states, including California, Florida, and Las Vegas. She took a helicopter flight over the Grand Canyon, according to court documents.

Bobbit also suspected that D’Amico, a carpenter, spent some of the donation money on gambling.

According to one of Bobbit’s attorneys, Christopher C. Fallon, numerous requests to D’Amico to account for the GoFundMe money went ignored. Fallon said D’Amico left them no choice but to file a lawsuit.

“He’s really left us with no choice but to go forward.”

On Monday, D’Amico appeared on the “Megyn Kelly Today” show and said more than $150,000 of the funds still remain. He previously told the Philadelphia Inquirer that he didn’t misuse the funds, yet admitted that he spent around $500 of it on gambling.

D’Amico also indicated they used a portion of it to buy Bobbitt a camper, which they placed on property owned by McClure’s family in Florence Township. D’Amico said he was kicked out in June and went through $25,000 given to him in a week due to drug issues. He claimed around half of the total funds raised were either given to Bobbitt directly or spent on him.

According to the GoFundMe page, however, McClure wrote that a home, not a camper, would be bought for Bobbit. Further, the page indicated that Bobbit would be getting a

Regardless, a New Jersey judge disagreed. Along with demanding that the pair provide a full account of where the money was spent, the judge ordered any and all remaining money to be given to Bobbitt.

Bobbitt’s other attorney, Jacqueline Promislo told NBC she “very concerned” about how much money has been spent by the defendants. When asked if she planned to go after the couple’s personal assets, she insinuated it could be a possibility.

“We will represent our client to the best of our abilities to recover all of the money raised for him.”

[Feature Photo: Johnny Bobbitt Jr. and Kate McClure/GoFundMe]