GoFundMe for Vancouver Festival Attack Victim Taken Down After Being Marked as Fraudulent

Following the tragic incident at the Vancouver Lapu Lapu festival, Raquel Narraway, a resident of the Lower Mainland, sought ways to assist her Filipino community. While browsing for ways to help, she stumbled upon a GoFundMe page aimed at supporting victims of the car attack but quickly found herself questioning its legitimacy.

She discovered this fundraiser after compiling a list of all GoFundMe pages linked to the tragedy on her Facebook profile, making it easier for people to locate and contribute.

“I’ve been active in the Filipino community, and I always want to step up when something like this occurs,” said Narraway, a real estate agent, in an interview with The Epoch Times.

On April 26, a vehicle plowed through the Filipino street festival, resulting in eleven fatalities and numerous injuries. Adam Kai-Ji Lo, aged 30, has been charged with eight counts of second-degree murder, with additional charges anticipated.

The GoFundMe page claimed to be raising funds for the children of an alleged victim, Reyna Dela Pena, stating that she was killed in the incident, leaving behind two boys. However, something seemed amiss to Narraway.

The organizer, who was not of Filipino descent, claimed to have been watching the victim’s children during the attack. Narraway found this suspicious, noting that in Filipino culture, parents typically have friends or family look after their kids if necessary.

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“As I read through the story, it just didn’t sit right with me,” she remarked.

Narraway reached out to others in the Filipino community to see if anyone recognized the purported victim. Her doubts intensified as no one acknowledged the woman after she shared the story in a Filipino Facebook group with 30,000 members.

“My suspicions continued to grow, and I couldn’t sleep,” Narraway recalled.

Through various social media channels, she eventually identified the woman featured on the GoFundMe page, who claimed that her photos were used without consent.

“The fundraiser has been taken down, all contributions have been refunded, and the organizer has been prohibited from any future fundraising activities,” a spokesperson for the company stated to The Epoch Times.

GoFundMe clarified that the organizer never had access to any of the donated funds.

“At no point did the organizer have access to the money. We have a zero-tolerance policy for platform misuse and take swift measures against anyone attempting to exploit community generosity,” the spokesperson added.

The company also highlighted its strong security measures to identify fraudulent activities on its platform, ensuring that all donors are protected with a guarantee and will receive refunds if a fundraiser is proven to be fraudulent.

Narraway credited her previous encounters with online scams for her ability to spot this one.

“I’ve faced many scammers in the past—though none like this—but I remain vigilant,” Narraway stated.

She advised donors to contribute only to verified fundraisers.

“Scammers are incredibly adept at manipulating emotions,” she emphasized. “As a community, we should prioritize due diligence and exercise caution.”