Cuomo says UHO is a scam

For years, while walking the streets in New York City one might see tables manned by people in red aprons collecting money for the homeless. The organization is called United Homeless Organization.

And according to New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo the organization is a fraud.

"UHO exploits the good intentions of people who thought that their charitable donations were helping to fund services for the homeless," Cuomo said in a statement posted on his Web site. "Instead, their donations go directly to UHO's principals and workers, who abused the organization's tax-exempt status to line their own pockets."...

...The organization charges its workers a $15 fee for use of the tables, aprons, water jugs and brochures. The workers then pocket all the money solicited during their "shift," the lawsuit says....

...As many as 50 tables are set up throughout the city seven days a week, with two shifts on weekdays and one on weekends, according to the lawsuit. Based on those numbers, Riley and Walker could have been making roughly $9,000 a week or $100,000 untaxed dollars every year.

Who pockets the money for the $15 table fee? The organization. Who is the organization? Two people.

The organization's board consists of founder and president, Stephen Riley, who runs the organization from his home in the Bronx, and its director, Myra Walker. Nobody else.

What is exceptionally sad about all this, to me at least, is that the estimates are $9,000 a week. Every week regular folks gave what they could spare and it totaled $9,000 a week.

$9,000 a week every week...that didn't help any homeless people.

The city's Department of Homeless Services' last estimate of New York's homeless population, released Nov. 20, put the total at nearly 38,000 people.

38,000 people. $9,000 a week.

$9,000 a week that should have been going to those 38,000 people...and wasn't.

And with the news of Cuomo's lawsuit against UHO, people might now feel less secure about donating to worthy causes. When criminal unethical people do things like this, it can spread fear that any charity you could donate to might, in fact, be less than legitimate.

$9,000 a week never made it to the homeless people it was ostensibly meant to help. How much more will not make it now? How many more people won't drop money in a bucket because of the unethical and illegal acts of Riley and Walker?

With unemployment and homelessness rising, it is incredibly disheartening to read about stuff like this.

But there are many, many valid charities that do help others. Please don't let the actions of scam artists like Riley and Walker dissuade you from helping others.