Homeless Man Pleads Guilty to Soliciting Funds in Mansfield for Fake Veterans' Charity

A homeless man from Texas was convicted Monday of fraudulently receiving thousands of dollars for a bogus armed forces veterans’ charity Thursday.

Gary Fincher, 53, pleaded guilty to charges of larceny over $250 and misleading police according to a press release from the Bristol County District Attorney’s office. He was sentenced to 14 months in state prison (deemed served due to his pretrial detention) and ordered that $8,979 be paid as restitution to the Wounded Warriors project. He was also placed supervised probation for three years. If he violates his probation, he faces up to 10 years in state prison.

On August 4, 2014, Sgt. Michael Ellsworth of the Mansfield Police Department witnessed Fincher soliciting donations for a charity called “Help for Homeless Vets.” outside of the Mansfield Stop and Shop on Chauncy Street. The defendant was seated at a table near the exit doors of the store, was wearing a veterans hat and a veterans ID badge. His table was stocked with signage and pamphlets for the “Help for Homeless Vets” charity. The defendant told Ellsworth he had served in the military in 1979 and 1980.

Sgt. Ellsworth, a veteran himself, made inquiries to the attorney general’s office and was informed that the charity was not a registered charitable organization. When Sgt. Ellsworth returned to the grocery store to speak with Mr. Fincher, he dad already packed up his table and left.

An investigation by police in Mansfield determined that Fincher was keeping the money donated to the non-existent charitable organization. $783 in cash was located in his vehicle and around $10,000 was in a bank account. After his arrest, the defendant admitted to police that he traveled the country accepting money from strangers under the pretense that he was collecting money for charity.