Month: January 2021

Friends of Breastfeeding have discovered that a former National Committee member of the charity, between July 2019 and March 2020, stole a significant amount of money from the charity. The money taken amounts to almost the entirety of the charity’s direct fundraising efforts for 2019. It includes the profit made from the All About Baby Fair 2019 and the Friends of Breastfeeding 10th Anniversary Gala Awards. It also includes donations received from the public at Mum2Mum Groups, via raffles, and other direct donations. We reported the criminal activity to the Gardai as soon as it was discovered and we have assisted with their investigation throughout this difficult year. An arrest has been made and a file has been sent to the D.P.P.. Operating under instruction from the Gardaí, we were not in a position to make this fraud public until now so as not to jeopardise the investigation. While we are deeply saddened to have become the victims of fraud, we fully accept our duty and responsibility to ensure every donation is used properly and for the purposes for which it was intended. As such, a thorough review of our procedures and practices has been conducted and we have already addressed the weaknesses identified. We have appointed a Vice Treasurer, which is an additional position to support our Treasurer. We have strengthened and amended many of our procedures to...

What happened? And when? Irregularities in the charity’s bank account were discovered in early 2020. The amount taken was €6,600 and the theft happened between July 2019 and March 2020. We reported the suspected criminal activity to the Gardai as soon as it was discovered and have assisted with their investigation. An arrest was made and a file has been sent to the D.P.P.. What money was taken? The money taken amounts to almost the entirety of the charity’s direct fundraising efforts for2019. It includes the profit made from the All About Baby Fair 2019 and the Friends of Breastfeeding 10th Anniversary Gala Awards. It also includes donations received from the public at Mum2Mum Groups, via raffles, and other direct donations. All of our grant monies received from funding bodies are safe and untouched, and our funders have been kept informed. Can the money be recouped? It is unlikely that we will be able to recoup the monies taken. No offer to return the money has been made and litigation to recover the monies may not be successful and would be very expensive. While Friends of Breastfeeding does have insurance, our insurance bill is already our single largest expense and the increased premium following a claim will likely, over a number of years, exceed the value of the monies taken. The avenues available to us to recover the funds...