Wellingborough man jailed over fake GoFundMe page for fatal crash victims

A man from Wellingborough has been jailed after an investigation into a fake fundraising page set up in memory of four people who died in a crash.

Jason MacDonald, 38, is behind bars and starting a 26-month prison term over the ‘despicable’ crime.

A fraudulent GoFundMe page titled ‘Jordan, Corey, Matt, Ryan Memorial’ was set up shortly after a fatal collision on the A4 in Wiltshire in August 2020 and thousands of pounds were donated.

Jordan Rawlings, 20, Corey Owen, 19, Matthew Parke, 19, and Ryan Nelson, 20, were killed when the car they were travelling in left the road near Chippenham.

MacDonald, of Blackbird Court, was found guilty of possessing the criminal property of the fraud and possession with intent to supply class A drugs.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Kevin Golledge said: “We hope this result sends a strong message to others that we take such incidents seriously and we won’t hesitate to take action.

"This was a despicable crime that saw someone try to capitalise on the deaths of four young men.”

And Police Sergeant Rich Marshall said: “This is a crime that has impacted the four children’s family and the people who paid into the donation account. We hope the sentencing will show that justice has been done and I hope this brings some closure for the families of the four young men.”

A spokesman for GoFundMe previously told the Daily Mail those who had donated would be refunded.