West Islip Man Banned From Fundraising By Judge Over Bogus Breast Cancer Charity

This article was written by Barbara Capella Loehr.

A professional fundraising firm led by a West Islip man has been barred by a Suffolk County judge from doing any further charity fundraising following allegations of duping people into giving to a bogus breast cancer charity.

According to a report on Newsday.com and from the Associated Press, Justice Emily Pines ruled on Thursday that Lindenhurst-based Campaign Center, Incorporated, and its owner, Garrett Morgan, knew they were defrauding people when they called to solicit funds for the Coalition Against Breast Cancer Incorporated.

The May 2 ruling also requires the Campaign Center to pay restitution, the report said.

Justice Pines said the restitution owed by Campaign Center will be determined at a hearing on May 20, according to a report on SFGate.com (San Francisco Chronicle) and from the AP.

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who sued in 2011, said in the SFGate.com report the charity, Coalition Against Breast Cancer, separately reached agreement with his office last month to pay $1.55 million and cease operating in New York.

Schneiderman also said in the Newsday report the company made 6,000 calls per day on behalf of the center.

In addition, the charity raised $10 million between 2005 and 2011, but only $48,000 actually went to fight cancer, according to the report.

Despite raising nearly $10 million from 2005 to 2011, he said the charity did no research or public education, and supported mammograms for only 40 women, according to the SFGate.com report.

Calls to lawyers for both organizations were not immediately returned, and a woman who answered the phone at the company's South Wellwood Avenue office declined to comment Saturday, according to both reports.

To read the full reports click here and here.