Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit today against Ian Richard Hosang, a former stockbroker with mafia ties, that alleges Hosang created sham nonprofits to cover up illegal activity. Hosang previously pleaded guilty to money laundering and conspiracy. He spent 12 years in federal prison.
The lawsuit, filed in King County Superior Court, asserts that Hosang violated the Consumer Protection Act and the Nonprofit Corporations Act when he created six nonprofits that imitated legitimate charitable organizations with similar names.
“I’m deeply concerned that a convicted money launderer created these sham nonprofits using the names of legitimate, internationally-recognized organizations,” said Ferguson. “If you donated to any of these nonprofits, please contact my office.”
If you donated to any of Hosang's organizations, please contact the Attorney General's office here.
According to court documents, Hosang created the following fake nonprofits.
American Cancer Society of Seattle
American Cancer Society of Washington
American Red Cross of Seattle
American Red Cross of Washington
United Way of Seattle
United Way of Washington
The address for all of the fake nonprofits turned out to be a post office box at the UPS Store on Capitol Hill.
"We don't know if any Washington consumer has actually donated to any one of these fraudulent nonprofits, and one of the reasons we filed this lawsuit was to make sure that nobody does," said Shannon Smith, with the Washington State Attorney General's Office on Tuesday.
KIRO 7 spoke to the president of the United Way of King County, the real nonprofit, on Tuesday afternoon.
"That disturbs us," said Jon Fine, president of United Way of King County. "Charities are trying to do really important worth while things. At United Way of King County, we're trying to make sure people have homes, students graduate, families are financially stable. When we hear someone is engaging in a scam, using our name and not using money for those purposes, it's disturbing."
Fine says to make sure to check out any charity on the Secretary of State's website before giving. He also said United Way can help by accepting the donation and then sending it on to the charity of your choice. He said United Way of King County will make sure to check out the individual charity first.
Cox Media Group
