ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department is issuing a warning about GoFundMe accounts created for a retired police captain who was shot and killed during riots in the city this week.
Police said there have been concerns about several GoFundMe pages that have been created in the name of retired captain David Dorn.
They said none of the pages have been authorized by his family, and authorities are in the process of taking them down.
If anyone would like to donate, the family said people can give money toward the reward through CrimeStoppers or donate to BackStoppers in Dorn’s honor.
CrimeStoppers is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to an arrest in his death. BackStoppers has provided $50,000 in assistance to Dorn's family.
GoFundMe reached out to 5 On Your Side and said all the money being raised by the pages is being held and will be transferred to the family.
GoFundMe issued this statement:
"When there’s an unspeakable tragedy, it’s not uncommon to see GoFundMe campaigns set up to help another individual.
In this case, our team has reached out to the local Police Department. All money is safely held by our payment processor and it will only be transferred to and accessed by the family. If the family would like to refund these donors, we will immediately process those refunds.
If a donor has a question or wants to know more about a campaign before they donate, they can reach out to our team or the Campaign Organizer directly through the GoFundMe page.
It’s also important to know that the platform is backed by the GoFundMe Guarantee, which means funds are guaranteed to go to the right place or donors will get a refund. Here is additional information on the GoFundMe Guarantee: www.gofundme.com/guarantee."
Dorn, 77, was shot outside of Lee's Pawn and Jewelry early Tuesday morning after a night of riots in the city in response to the death of George Floyd.
On Monday, many people were out peacefully protesting in the city but after the sun went down, rioting and looting began.
Several businesses were damaged, four police officers were shot and several people were arrested. Tuesday morning, St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson issued a 9 p.m. curfew following the night of unrest.
There were no protests or riots in St. Louis Tuesday night.
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