A judge has blocked a Las Vegas woman from collecting $230,000 after she lied about being a single mom to three girls.
CNN helped raise $233,000 for Dasha Kelly after she was interviewed about the eviction moratorium in early August.
Kelly told CNN reporter Nick Watt she is a “single mom” of three girls, ages 5, 6 and 8, and she feared they would end up on the street.
READ ALSO: CNN raised $230K for woman who lied about being mom to three children
During the report Kelly dabbed her dry eyes with a wad of tissue, as she explained she owed $1,900 in back rent.
CNN promoted Kelly’s GoFundMe account which raised over $233,000. Kelly later confessed she lied about being the mother of the three girls.
Kelly told Watt she was babysitting the girls for her boyfriend, their biological father. She said the children have a home – with their biological mother.
The girls’ biological mother, Shadia Hilo, sued GoFundMe to freeze the funds, according to Hilo’s attorney, Marc Randazza.
Atlanta Black Star reported a Las Vegas judge has blocked Kelly’s access to the funds.
In court documents, Hilo stated Kelly “exploited the children for financial gain in a fraudulent fundraising scheme.”
In a statement, Randazza said:
“The judge decided, at least based on what he had seen in the case so far, we had a substantial likelihood of success on the merits, and that it would be fair and equitable to lock the money up so the kids don’t have it, Ms. Kelly doesn’t have it. The money is just sitting right where it was until further action by the court.”
Randazza told the court he and Hilo offered to split the $233,000 four ways between Kelly and the three girls. However, Kelly declined the offer.
After Randazza contacted GoFundMe, the crowdfunding site gave donors the option to ask for refunds. Subsequently, the $233,000 decreased to a little more than $162,000.
