Ohio Clean Water Fund of Columbus, Ohio, as well as Michael Peppel, the organization’s “founder and principal person,” are under investigation for alleging raising more than $141,000 but only spending $10,000 for provide aid, such as bottled water, to families near the train wreck in East Palestine, Ohio
On February 3, 38 cars in a train carrying toxic chemicals from Madison, Illinois to Conway, Pennsylvania derailed in East Palestine. The spill resulted in evacuations around the site, as well as longer-term concerns about water and soil contamination.
“The idea that somebody would so brazenly exploit a disaster situation and the good hearts of people who want to help is unconscionable,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said in a statement. “I’m mad as hell about this, and we’re going to make sure this sham charity gets shut down.”
According to Yost’s complaint, Ohio Clean Water Fund, LLC was formed as a domestic limited liability company in March. “Shortly after [the derailment] and before it was even incorporated, Ohio Clean Water began soliciting charitable contributions by and through its website at https://ohiocleanwaterfund.com/, mass text messages, and mass emails,” Yost wrote in the complaint.
The website was offline as of the morning of April 12. The Internet Archive had not captured any previous incarnations of the site, and a search on GuideStar did not reveal any information about the organization.
Per the complaint, when operational the website claimed “the purpose of these solicitations is to ‘provid[e] clean bottled water to families in and around East Palestine’ and ‘Gifts made to the Ohio Clean Water Fund go to helping those in need, and we appreciate every donation no matter the size.’” Peppel did not register Ohio Clean Water as a 501(c)3 organization with the Attorney General’s office, in violation of Ohio law, according to the complaint.
According to the complaint, in both text messages and on its website the organization claimed to be in partnership with the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley, Youngstown, Ohio, and that the organization was “on the ground helping.”
“No such partnership has ever existed,” the Ohio AG’s office alleged in its complaint. Instead, Peppel had sent an email to Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley’s Executive Director Michael Iberis in late February, which the executive director neither read nor acknowledged, the complaint continued. Nonetheless, Peppel and Ohio Clean Water raised at least $141,183.48 from 3,269 donors, according to the complaint.
“Unbeknownst to those donors, Defendants apparently spent at least $91,769.26 of those funds on administrative fees rather than programming, leaving $35,295.87 in Ohio Clean Water’s coffers,” according to the complaint.
The defendants did issue a check for $10,000 to Second Harvest, but only after Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley posted a notice on its website stating it had no affiliation with either Peppel or Ohio Clean Water. Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley posted the notice after employees began receiving calls asking about the supposed relationship between the organizations, Iberis told The NonProfit Times.
“It has been brought to our attention that others are collecting monetary donations through text messages to help with our efforts in East Palestine,” according to language posted on Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley’s website. “It’s our recommendation that you send the donation directly to us rather than going through a third party per Charity Navigator guidelines. Please feel free to check our rating on that site too.”
“[Peppel] called the day after we posted the information and said he had the money and would bring it by,” Iberis said. “We don’t partner with anyone,” he continued. “There are many people who raise money for us. What they do is they raise money and bring it in, But we knew nothing of this organization. Typically people who raise money for us are long-time supporters.”
The $10,000 was the only payment received by Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley from Peppel or Ohio Clean Water, Iberis confirmed.
Iberis did not comment on whether individuals from his organization had reached out to AG Yost’s office, or taken any other actions, saying only that the matter was in litigation.
Yost is seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction that would prevent Peppel from making further charitable solicitations, and which would freeze Peppel’s organization’s existing assets. In addition, Yost is leveling seven counts against Peppel, including committing deceptive acts or practices; misrepresenting contributions as for a charitable organization without written authorization; misleading persons as to material facts concerning solicitation; failure to register; unlawful professional solicitation; breach of fiduciary duties, common law; and breach of fiduciary duties, statutory.
