Madison “Maddie” Russo is a 19-year-old Iowa woman accused of faking having cancer to steal more than $37,000 from GoFundMe donors, the Eldridge Police Department said in a press release.
Russo, an Eldridge native and Bettendorf resident, was charged with theft by means of deception, a class C felony, on January 23, 2023, according to the press release from the Eldridge Police, which was posted online by the North Scott Press. According to the press release, Russo raised more than $37,303 from 439 donors on GoFundMe in 2022 after she claimed to have “Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, Stage 2 Pancreatic Cancer and a tumor, the size of a football, that wrapped around her spine.”
Police added, “During the investigation, subpoenas for medical records were obtained where it showed that Madison had never been diagnosed with any kind of cancer or tumor from any medical facilities within the Quad Cities or surrounding cities.”
GoFundMe said in a statement to OurQuadCities.com, “GoFundMe has a …