It's a real shame that sites like just giving don't go out of their way to make it crystal clear that once you've donated money to someone, whatever their stated aim, they can do anything they want with it.
Case in point: there's a well known blogger called selfloveclubb who has mental health issues: a year ago she set up a page for donations for 'therapy', that she hadn't actually looked into or costed yet. Asked for £2k then increased the target to £3k. She got the money, and then it was never spoken of again. Followers ask where it went and if she sought help and the questions are just deleted on instagram. A year later she still posts there's no help out there despite having been given £3k to go and seek it.
Then she 'got cancer', stage four cervical. Which mysteriously went away after two months of 'treatment'. She shaved her head to look more realistic but then magically, once she'd fundraised several more thousands for 'cancer charities', she 'got better' and the cancer was never addressed nor spoken of again. All comments regarding it deleted. No evidence where that money went.
It's appalling that someone can set up an instagram account and fleece followers of thousands of pounds and there's absolutely nothing anyone can do about it. You could say the people who've donated should have known but people mean well and often take things at face value.
I'm a regular poster btw just name changed for this as she is still active and no doubt setting up the next scam.
There's a real wider issue here isn't there about people asking for funds and donors not knowing their lack of rights once it's out of their hands, obviously in the AE case his parents were raising funds for what they believed was treatment, but people asking for refunds obviously were clueless that you're just handing money over then it is done and you can't do a thing about it.