To think DP is being used by so called "friend"

And has he even thought through withdrawing that much money in cash. The banks don't just let you walk in and take it. There are money laundering checks to get through.

He's going to have so many flags attached to all his future accounts he'll have trouble buying anything larger than a coffee.

Can he name a single legal reason for someone needing that quantity of untraceable money?

Does he know what the 'tax reasons' are preventing others from doing this? And if they apply to every other friend and family member, why don't they apply to him?

Does he understand that, if things go south, he has no way to prove that he didn't raise the money on false pretences, or to prove that he didn't hand it over?The paper trail will say he still has it.

It's clearly something illegal.

Personally I couldn't be with someone with such low moral standards. And if I could overlook that aspect, I certainly couldn't be with someone so utterly stupid.

"The money has to be untraceable" eh? That shrieks "scam" and if he's taking money from other people then your husband has been sucked in to being the scammer. Scams often operate on multiple levels with one scammer dragging other people in.

Though I wonder if your husband has been sucked in to a money laundering scam? He has been asked by his "friend" to carry a sum of cash into Germany which is just under the legal limit. It wouldn't be a surprise if his "friend" was asking a lot of other people to do the same.

donations from friends, plus other anarchists who follow their music - they put on anarchists gigs and it seems they are quite well known on this scene

Your husband should wonder exactly who is paying in to this GoFundMe. Medical crowdfunders don't usually raise much and people living alternative lifestyles who earn money from DJing can't afford to put vast sums of money into crowdfunders. Well not unless they're doing something extremely dodgy on the side.

Dp is named on gofundme as the organiser

Silly sod. Oh well, here's hoping it all goes OK and he doesn't get asked to do anything more stupid afterwards. Or blackmailed into it.

But surely OP can look at the fundraiser and see if the money is from genuine friends and family of the couple? It's perfectly possible that the poor women does have cancer and on a low income, and that people who KNOW her are chipping in to give support. It's possible the cancer is all just a fake story, but how often do random strangers give to a crowdfunder like this for such an unthreatening illness for someone in a wealthy country? It just makes me think the donors are people who want to help and trust the couple. I would never have let my DP set up something like this, but there has to be an element of trust that he knows his friend and knows the donations aren't from people being mugged.

OP, thankfully you are not married.

He's a gullible moron, which is so u attractive.
His "loyalty" is to some user which is confirmation of how dim he is.

Protect yourself and rethink how much you really want to be attached to such poor judgment.

Donations from fellow anarchists sounds like some sort of money laundering scheme to me.
Your DH should tread VERY carefully.

I'd be concerned that:

• the money donated may actually be a cover for something
• the people donating may not be clear what it's going to, and that will cause problems later if your DP is seen as the organiser
• if it genuinely has to be in cash and untraceable, it sounds like it's illegal in Germany and your DP could get in trouble

I used to live in Germany and know a bit, not everything, about the social welfare systems. This sounds really dodgy to me for all the reasons pp have listed.

Has the 7k come in from lots of people, in dribs and drabs or has it been significant, rounded chunks @Queenjuliana ? Anonymous or named donors?

If your DH has read GFM's T&C he clearly must realise the situation he's placing himself in re: tax and disclosures and responsibilities and as he's had to give a bank account, NI number, passport details and UK phone and address, he's tagged already.

The question is, could you be impacted in any of this? Joint bank account? Your address too? Oh and another q: who is reimbursing him for German Mule Trip? He's not taking this out of the proceeds, is he?

I don't need to tell you this as as dodgy as hell. Personally, DH or not, I'd be reporting the campaign to GFM. You can do that anonymously, whether you are a donor or not.

I thought too, that people are buying drugs from the friend and they are paying via go fund me. Possibly because the police are keeping an eye on friend.

The wife may well have cancer, but I think this is a convenient excuse for nefarious goings on.

If he's still not listening to you OP perhaps show him this thread. Lots of people here are agreeing with you so maybe if he sees that, it might make him think. Well, it should do anyway!

Proper Dodgy!

Surely it s not as simple as that? If there is benefit fraud being committed (entirely possible) and/or the money has been collected under false pretences because the partner isn't actually ill, then is there not a danger that op s dp is laundering money which is a criminal offence?

So, at best, by handing over cash he has no evidence that the money he has collected didn't just go straight into his own pocket. One complaint by a donor, he's investigated, and potentially done for fraud.

At worst, it's something like money laundering.

If he won't listen to sense though, I don't know what you can do
Just make sure your own hands are clean.

Or I wonder if you should get him to contact Just Giving to ask them for advice on records required when passing funds on.

I'd be so furious with him.

They are mainly leeches, just like this couple, disgusting behaviour what an awful situation.

Do people know they are donating to fund their living or do they think it’s for medical treatments
I’d be careful OP
x

i am German and living in Germany and I cannot imagine that they don’t have statutory health insurance unless they are homeless and totally out of the system. Plus they would be entitled to financial help in the form of Bürgergeld, Wohngeld and so on.
My hunch is that the wife does not have cancer.

Well your DP is an adult so I would just let him crack on but tell him you want no part of it and you don’t want to hear anything further about it. He’s a mug though, and this would probably change my view of him.

I think now the money is collected he should just go ahead with it. It would have been better to discuss this before the crowdfunder was set up. The 'victims' here are the friends and family who donated, and that's their choice. Presumably they know and trust the couple who are receiving the money? As unusual as all this is I can't see any problem for your DP acting as go between. If the people who donated did it willingly then it's on them. If they are mostly friends of the poor woman with cancer then it's not likely to be fraud, but just sympathy payments, perhaps by people who support the alternative lifestyle. The people donating are foolish, but it's their call what they do with the money.

I've worked for a charity @Queenjuliana has your husband read the terms and conditions of go fund me. Because if one donor complains to them they will vigorously investigate and your husband will be legally responsible for every single penny.

For this reason he must talk to go fund me and if necessary return every single donation.

The only possible explanation is he's claiming SOME benefits and is wanting to hide the money to defraud German state...

Or this is money laundering of some kind.

OP, if he persists in going ahead, I’d be tempted to alert the border agencies, if only to protect yourself.

Look forward to seeing the details in the newspaper when your dh is prosecuted.
Will you start a go fund me for his legal fees?
That would be hilarious.

You DH is being taken for a mug. His "mate" is a lazy, free-loading good for nothing. Benefits and health care in Germany are great. The fact that your DP is being told the money must be cash, stinks terribly. And confirms that the money is really for something other than what the GoFundMe donors have been told. Grrrr!

The 10k Euro limit is a red herring. That is simply the reportable / declaration limit for cash. Obtaining or carrying any amount is potentially illegal if it is being used to commit benefit fraud, facilitate tax evasion, has been obtained by misrepresentation etc. It’s not the amount that makes it illegal or problematic, it’s how it was obtained and/or what it is being used for.

Your DP is taking all the risk for none of the benefit.

I am a financial services lawyer and I wouldn’t go near this scheme.

Look, you're up against it, because he will tend to stick to what he first believed (that they are genuine and in need) (we all suffer from confirmation bias)
But I wonder if you would ask him to consider some questions, on the small possibility that his friends are not being fully above board.
First of all

• does he have any of the attributes that would make him vulnerable to being taken advantage of (too trusting, good natured etc) (has he regretted decisions he has made before)
• do his friends have any of the attributes that would make them vulnerable to being taken advantage of by others (financial difficulties, cancer) or any history of doing things that are not quite above board
• Will he Google GoFundMe Scams to fully inform himself
• Who will be liable to the platform or reported to the police if the scheme is flagged as fraudulent (GoFundMe have a refund policy in cases of fraud, if he's given the cash to them, how will he afford?)
• if not going through bank accounts, could this be a money laundering scheme (there's a post on Reddit saying people get contacted by people who offer large donations if you will give them 30% back - his friends could have been offered a percentage to set this up on the back of her cancer diagnosis)
• does he know that she definitely knows about it
• what are the tax implications (there's some info on gofundmes pages about fraud)
• a good sign that something is not right is not wanting to tell people about it, ask him to tell five people openly what he is doing including the cash suitcase and to take on board any views they have. If not, why not? Or to get advice from a fraud helpline - again, if he doesn't want to, why not (because he knows in his heart that it's dodgy)
• would he rather face the embarrassment of backing out now, or the embarrassment of being investigated and prosecuted for fraud/tax/money laundering

Nope! Go fund me keep it, I know this because one I'd donated to got cancelled I never got a penny back.