Milwaukee woman admits to lying that Red Cross didn't help her family after fire
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- A Milwaukee woman who accused the American Red Cross of not helping her after her house caught fire now admits she lied.
Latressa Turner says she had no idea this would turn into something so big,
“People came to me and said to me that the Red Cross didn't help them before and just try to lie and say I didn't receive the money. I didn't see how far that was going to go, but I didn't know it was going to get this far," Turner said in a Facebook Live video to local activist Tory Lowe.
Turner's home was damaged by a fire back on December 28 and she claimed the Red Cross didn't provide support for her.
Thursday night the American Red Cross refuted those claims even providing documents showing that the Turner family received more than $500 in financial aid.
Community activist Tory Lowe said he’s sorry that people have been misled. Many people donated to her through a local community center and also through GoFundMe. On Facebook, Lowe said the GoFundMe page that had reached about $1,200 has been put on hold.
“Today was a sad day for this community cause a woman who lost everything decided to lie about having nothing. Go figure. The GoFundMe account has been put on hold so all the money should be returned to all that have given and want a return. So check your email.”
The Red Cross sent CBS 58 the following statement after Turner admitted her dishonesty: