Mum felt sick after late son鈥檚 charity defrauded

Image caption, Natalie Ridler, Morgan鈥檚 mother who founded Morgan鈥檚 Army, said she would not let the situation 鈥渕ake me harder鈥
  • Author, Meleri Williams
  • Role, 麻豆社 News

A mum felt "a bit sick" after a woman admitted defrauding a charity set up in her late son鈥檚 name.

Charlotte Blackwell, 41, from Bridgend, pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and trying to gain 拢4,000 for herself.

She targeted Morgan鈥檚 Army, which was founded after three-year-old Morgan Ridler died last year of a rare cancer.

She was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for 21 months, ordered to do 180 hours of community service and given a night-time curfew.

Natalie Ridler, Morgan鈥檚 mother who founded Morgan鈥檚 Army, said she would not let the situation 鈥渕ake me harder鈥.

Mrs Ridler said she received an application from a woman to help fund treatment abroad for "a child who had relapsed".

But weeks after supporting Blackwell with fundraising for treatment, Mrs Ridler found out she had lied.

Based in Gorseinon, near Swansea, Morgan鈥檚 Army supports families facing grief and cancer treatment.

Mrs Ridler said she helped Blackwell with fundraising for treatment, including setting up a GoFundMe page.

She said she reached out to other charities who specialised in this area, but noticed Blackwell was reluctant to accept help from elsewhere.

"I spoke to some charities and although they were familiar with this family because they were involved in a cancer diagnosis some years ago, they said this family hadn鈥檛 relapsed and weren鈥檛 back or looking for treatment," Mrs Ridler said.

"When I tried to ring the mother, she wouldn鈥檛 answer the phone and kept coming up with excuses. I asked her outright... there was radio silence."

Image source, Family photos

Image caption, Morgan Ridler, from Swansea, died in palliative care after he was diagnosed in 2021 at the age of two

Mrs Ridler contacted the police and the Charity Commission and was able to freeze the GoFundMe page and get people鈥檚 donations returned.

She said she spent several weeks speaking to Blackwell, "trying to support her emotionally through palliative care and trying to raise the funds for treatment".

"It made me feel like I had failed the charity. I thought that our checks were thorough enough," she said.

"It highlighted how na茂ve I may be, that even if families have been through horrendous things that we have, that they would still try and do things like this.鈥

Mrs Ridler said it made her feel "a bit sick", but she added: "I鈥檓 determined to live by the life lessons that Morgan taught me.

"To be empathetic, to be compassionate and to love and trust. I won鈥檛 let a situation like this make me harder."