The chairman of a Polish charity foundation dedicated to helping sick children has been detained by the police on suspicion of defrauding donations. The chairman, whose identity has not been disclosed, allegedly orchestrated a scheme to siphon off funds meant for charity and diverted them to his personal accounts, according to Justyna Pasieczynska, the spokesperson of the National Revenue Administration (KAS).
Pasieczynska revealed that the chairman had devised a mechanism to transfer money from charity fundraisers to his other companies’ accounts, subsequently using the funds to purchase real estate and luxury cars. Despite the foundation’s significant fundraising efforts, only a mere 1 percent of the collected money was directed towards the intended beneficiaries.
Contrary to the figures posted on the foundation’s website, which claimed total collections of PLN 1.1 million (EUR 250,000), investigations showed that more than 560,000 donors had contributed over PLN 28.5 million (EUR 6.41 million) to the foundation’s bank accounts.
Following his arrest, the suspect was formally charged and has been placed under temporary arrest for a period of three months.
“The tax services seized assets belonging to the foundation’s chairman and his associated companies, including 33 properties valued at over PLN 9.8 million (EUR 2.2 million), 3 luxury cars valued at over PLN 1.2 million (EUR 270,000), and a substantial amount of cash in Polish zloty, US dollars, and euros,” Pasieczynska announced. “Additionally, the prosecutor has frozen almost PLN 1.8 million (EUR 400,000) in the bank accounts of the foundation and its subsidiaries.”