Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson has filed a lawsuit against a Leavenworth man and his family for pocketing most of $1.5 million in donations that thousands of residents thought was going to disadvantaged children.
The lawsuit, filed in King County Superior Court, alleges that Roy Haueter, his wife, and his children and their spouses operated four charities and a commercial fundraiser that continually violated the state Charitable Solicitations Act and Consumer Protection Act. Ferguson says investigators have not found any evidence that the charities provided any direct benefit to children since at least 2012, and allege the charities instead only have provided a small number of gift cards to a few nonprofit entities.
Ferguson’s office asks the court to halt all deceptive activities by the organizations, and seeks civil penalties of up to $2,000 per violation of the Consumer Protection Act. Ferguson also asks the court to require the Haueter family to give the charities’ ill-gotten donations to legitimate charities who provide services to the children that the Haueters’ organizations claimed to help.
Since 2012, Haueter has performed all the day-to-day operations of the charities, including controlling the bank accounts, receiving and processing donations, and drafting and editing solicitations. His family members served formal roles, such as treasurer or secretary. (Washington AG)
