COCHRANE, ALBERTA, CANADA – Greek-Canadian Stelianos Psaroudakis, 37, has been charged with fraud and public mischief after he claimed to have been injured by barbed wire while biking on a mountain trail and then setting up a GoFundMe campaign for $8,000 to pay for his medical expenses and a new bike.
Psaroudakis told police on July 5 that he was clotheslined by barbed wire tied between two trees while cycling near West Bragg Creek, 40 miles northwest of Calgary. He posted photos online of his injured neck with a red gash. Psaroudakis also claimed that his bike, left on the ground where he was injured, was stolen. A friend had returned to retrieve the bike, but it was gone, he said.
Psaroudakis started his online fundraising campaign and managed to raise $851 before removing it following several complaints. GoFundMe has banned him from the site. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said on July 21 that they received many tips from the public and from people acquainted with Psaroudakis.
“As a result of all of the information that they provided us, we were able to determine that he had not hurt himself on the trail the way he claimed,” said RCMP Cpl. Curtis Peters, as reported in the National Post.
“We found out that he had actually been involved in a collision with a barbed wire fence, but he was riding an ATV on private property of a friend nearby and that’s how he got the injuries. It had nothing to do with the trail system or with mountain biking at all,” Peters said as the National Post reported.
Psaroudakis turned himself in on the afternoon of July 21, was released shortly after that, and is scheduled to appear in court on August 22.
He reportedly used the GoFundMe website three times in the past to raise funds, most recently for the Fort McMurray wildfire in norther Alberta. The campaign raised just $10 before it finally closed.
GoFundMe spokeswoman Rachel Hollis said Psaroudakis closed his campaign and all donors have been refunded. He has been banned from any future fundraising on the website.
“Campaigns with misuse are very rare, making up less than one tenth of one per cent of all campaigns,” she said, as reported by CBC News.
“Along with a host of proactive measures to prevent misuse, we also have the ability to receive reports from users about potential fraudulent activity, as in this case.”
After the testimony of other cyclists, inhabitants of the area, and information collected during the investigation, the Police concluded that the accident described by Psaroudakis never occurred and resulted in an arrest warrant against him. A few hours later, the 37-year-old, who lives in Calgary, turned himself in to the Cochrane Police.
Police Inspector Lauren Weare said that the injuries of Psaroudakis are real but occurred at a different point and time. As a result, the local police began an investigation to identify the conditions under which Psaroudakis was injured.
Also, information from local media reported that from the very first moment that the story broke, there were serious doubts about its veracity, especially from the local cycling community.
“I want to thank everyone for their patience as long as the research has been in progress and also to thank those who came to us and gave us important information,” Inspector Weare said.
After his release from custody, Psaroudakis tried to explain why he failed to disclose the ATV crash, as reported by CTV News, saying, “I was trying to keep a friend out of trouble. He had an unregistered, unlicensed vehicle with no brakes.”
Psaroudakis then apologized for his decisions to report that he was clotheslined by barbed wire while mountain biking and to create a GoFundMe campaign.
“I’m stupid,” he said, “I want to help and I never do it the right way. I wanted to donate [the money] for cameras and stuff to help a cause.”
Psaroudakis added that he wouldn’t fight the charges, as reported in CTV News, “I’m pleading guilty. I made a mistake and I’m going to face them.”
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