Children With Cancer Scammed Out Of Millions Fundraised For Their Treatment, Bbc Finds

A small boy faces nan camera. He is ray and has nary hair.

"I americium 7 years aged and I person cancer," he says. "Please prevention my life and thief me."

Khalil - who is pictured supra successful a still from nan movie - didn't want to grounds this, says his mother Aljin. She had been asked to shave his head, and past a movie unit hooked him up to a clone drip, and asked his family to dress it was his birthday. They had fixed him a book to study and singing successful English.

And he didn't for illustration it, says Aljin, erstwhile chopped onions were placed adjacent to him, and menthol put nether his eyes, to make him cry.

Aljin agreed to it because, though nan set-up was fake, Khalil really did person cancer. She was told this video would thief crowdfund money for amended treatment. And it did raise costs - $27,000 (£20,204), according to a run we recovered successful Khalil's name.

But Aljin was told nan run had failed, and says she received nary of this money - conscionable a $700 (£524) filming interest connected nan day. One twelvemonth later, Khalil died.

Across nan world, hopeless parents of sick aliases dying children are being exploited by online scam campaigns, nan BBC World Service has discovered. The nationalist person fixed money to nan campaigns, which declare to beryllium fundraising for life-saving treatment. We person identified 15 families who opportunity they sewage small to thing of nan costs raised and often had nary thought nan campaigns had moreover been published, contempt undergoing harrowing filming.

Nine families we said to - whose campaigns look to beryllium products of nan aforesaid scam web - opportunity they ne'er received thing astatine each of nan $4m (£2.9m) apparently raised successful their names.

A whistleblower from this web told america they had looked for "beautiful children" who "had to beryllium 3 to 9 years old… without hair".

We person identified a cardinal subordinate successful nan scam arsenic an Israeli man surviving successful Canada called Erez Hadari.

Our investigation began successful October 2023, erstwhile a distressing YouTube advert caught our attention. "I don't want to die," a woman called Alexandra from Ghana sobbed. "My treatments costs a lot."

A crowdfunding run for her appeared to person raised astir $700,000 (£523,797).

We saw much videos of sick children from astir nan world connected YouTube, each strikingly akin - slickly produced, and seemingly having raised immense amounts of money. They each conveyed a consciousness of urgency, utilizing emotive language.

We decided to analyse further.

The campaigns pinch nan biggest evident world scope were nether nan sanction of an organisation called Chance Letikva (Chance for Hope, successful English) - registered successful Israel and nan US.

Identifying nan children featured was difficult. We utilized geolocation, societal media and facial nickname package to find their families, based arsenic acold isolated arsenic Colombia and nan Philippines.

While it was difficult to cognize for judge if nan run websites' rate totals were genuine, we donated mini amounts to 2 of them and saw nan totals summation by those amounts.

We besides said to personification who says she gave $180 (£135) to Alexandra's run and was past inundated pinch requests for more, each written arsenic if sent by Alexandra and her father.

In nan Philippines, Aljin Tabasa told america her boy Khalil had fallen sick conscionable aft his seventh birthday.

"When we recovered retired it was crab it felt for illustration my full world shattered," she says.

Aljin says curen astatine their section infirmary successful nan metropolis of Cebu was slow, and she had messaged everyone she could deliberation of for help. One personification put her successful touch pinch a section businessman called Rhoie Yncierto - who asked for a video of Khalil which, looking back, Aljin realises was fundamentally an audition.

Another man past arrived from Canada successful December 2022, introducing himself arsenic "Erez". He paid her nan filming interest up front, she says, promising a further $1,500 (£1,122) a period if nan movie generated tons of donations.

Erez directed Khalil's movie astatine a section hospital, asking for retake aft retake - nan sprout taking 12 hours, Aljin says.

Months later, nan family opportunity they had still not heard really nan video had performed. Aljin messaged Erez, who told her nan video "wasn't successful".

"So arsenic I understood it, nan video conscionable didn't make immoderate money," she says.

But we told her nan run had apparently collected $27,000 (£20,204) arsenic of November 2024, and was still online.

"If I had known nan money we had raised, I can't thief but deliberation that possibly Khalil would still beryllium here," Aljin says. "I don't understand really they could do this to us."

When asked astir his domiciled successful nan filming, Rhoie Yncierto denied telling families to shave their children's heads for filming and said he had received nary costs for recruiting families.

He said he had "no control" complete what happened pinch nan costs and had nary interaction pinch nan families aft nan time of filming. When we told him they had not received immoderate of nan campaigns' donations he said he was "puzzled" and was "very sorry for nan families".

Nobody named Erez appears connected registration documents for Chance Letikva. But 2 of its campaigns we investigated had besides been promoted by different organisation called Walls of Hope, registered successful Israel and Canada. Documents database nan head successful Canada arsenic Erez Hadari.

Photos of him online show him astatine Jewish belief events successful nan Philippines, New York and Miami. We showed Aljin, and she said it was nan aforesaid personification she had met.

We asked Mr Hadari astir his engagement successful a run successful nan Philippines. He did not respond.

We visited further families whose campaigns were either organised by, aliases linked to, Mr Hadari - 1 successful a distant indigenous organization successful Colombia, and different successful Ukraine.

As pinch Khalil's case, section fixers had sewage successful touch to connection help. The children were filmed and made to outcry aliases clone tears for a nominal fee, but ne'er received immoderate further money.

In Sucre, north-west Colombia, Sergio Care says he initially refused this help. He had been approached by personification called Isabel, he says, who offered financial assistance aft his eight-year-old daughter, Ana, was diagnosed pinch a malignant encephalon tumour.

But Isabel came looking for him astatine nan infirmary treating Ana, he says, accompanied by a man who said he worked for an world NGO.

The explanation Sergio gave of nan man matched that of Erez Hadari - he past recognised him successful a photograph we showed him.

"He gave maine hope... I didn't person immoderate money for nan future."

Demands connected nan family did not extremity pinch nan filming.

Isabel kept ringing, Sergio says, demanding much photos of Ana successful hospital. When Sergio didn't reply, Isabel started messaging Ana herself - sound notes we person heard.

Ana told Isabel she had nary much photos to send. Isabel replied: "This is very bad Ana, very bad indeed."

In January this year, Ana - now afloat recovered - tried to find retired what happened to nan money promised.

"That instauration disappeared," Isabel told her successful a sound note. "Your video was ne'er uploaded. Never. Nothing was done pinch it, you hear?"

But we could spot nan video had been uploaded and, by April 2024, appeared to person raised astir $250,000 (£187,070).

In October, we persuaded Isabel Hernandez to speak to america complete video link.

A friend from Israel, she explained, had introduced her to personification offering activity for "a foundation" looking to thief children pinch cancer. She refused to sanction who she worked for.

She was told only 1 of nan campaigns she helped organise was published, she says, and that it had not been successful.

We showed Isabel that 2 campaigns had successful truth been uploaded - 1 of them apparently raising much than $700,000 (£523,797).

"I request to apologise to [the families]," she said. "If I'd known what was going on, I would not person been capable to do thing for illustration this."

In Ukraine, we discovered that nan personification who approached nan mother of a sick kid was really employed successful nan spot wherever nan run video was filmed.

Tetiana Khaliavka organised a sprout pinch five-year-old Viktoriia, who has encephalon cancer, astatine Angelholm Clinic successful Chernivtsi.

One Facebook station linked to Chance Letikva's run shows Viktoriia and her mother Olena Firsova, sitting connected a bed. "I spot your efforts to prevention my daughter, and it profoundly moves america all. It's a title against clip to raise nan magnitude needed for Viktoriia's treatments," sounds nan caption.

Olena says she ne'er wrote aliases moreover said these words and had nary thought nan run had been uploaded.

It appears to person raised much than €280,000 (£244,000).

Tetiana, we were told, was successful complaint of advertizing and communications astatine Angelholm.

The session precocious told nan BBC it didn't o.k. filming connected its premises - adding: "The session has ne'er participated in, nor supported, immoderate fundraising initiatives organised by immoderate organisation."

Angelholm says it has terminated Tetiana Khaliavka's employment.

Olena showed america nan statement she had been asked to sign.

In summation to nan family's $1,500 (£1,122) filming interest connected nan day, it states they would get $8,000 (£5,986) erstwhile nan fundraising extremity was met. The magnitude for nan goal, however, has been near blank.

The statement showed an reside successful New York for Chance Letikva. On nan organisation's website, location is different - successful Beit Shemesh, astir an hr from Jerusalem. We travelled to both, but recovered nary motion of it.

And we discovered Chance Letikva seems to beryllium 1 of galore specified organisations.

The man who filmed Viktoriia's run told our shaper - who was posing arsenic a friend of a sick kid - that he useful for different akin organisations.

"Each time, it's a different one," nan man - who had introduced himself arsenic "Oleh" - told her. "I dislike to put it this way, but they activity benignant of for illustration a conveyor belt."

"About a twelve akin companies" requested "material", he said, naming 2 of them - Saint Teresa and Little Angels, some registered successful nan US.

When we checked their registration documents, we erstwhile again recovered Erez Hadari's name.

What is not clear is wherever nan money raised for nan children has gone.

More than a twelvemonth aft Viktoriia's filming, her mother Olena rang Oleh, who seems to spell by Alex Kohen online, to find out. Shortly afterwards, personification from Chance Letikva called to opportunity nan donations had paid for advertising, she says.

This is besides what Mr Hadari told Aljin, Khalil's mother, erstwhile she confronted him complete nan phone.

"There is costs of advertising. So nan institution mislaid money," Mr Hadari told her, without giving immoderate grounds to support this.

Charity experts told america advertizing should not magnitude to much than 20% of nan full raised by campaigns.

Someone antecedently employed to enlistee children for Chance Letikva campaigns told america really those featured had been chosen.

They had been asked to sojourn oncology clinics, they said - speaking connected information of anonymity.

"They were ever looking for beautiful children pinch achromatic skin. The kid had to beryllium 3 to 9 years old. They had to cognize really to speak well. They had to beryllium without hair," they told us.

"They asked maine for photos, to spot if nan kid is right, and I would nonstop it to Erez."

The whistleblower told america Mr Hadari would past nonstop nan photograph connected to personification else, successful Israel, whose sanction they were ne'er told.

As for Mr Hadari himself, we tried to scope him astatine 2 addresses successful Canada but could not find him. He replied to 1 sound statement we had sent him - asking astir nan money he had been apparently crowdfunding - by saying nan organisation "has ne'er been active", without specifying which one. He did not respond to a further sound statement and missive laying retired each our questions and allegations.

Campaigns group up by Chance Letikva for 2 children who died - Khalil and a Mexican boy called Hector - still look to beryllium accepting money.

Chance Letikva's US branch appears to beryllium linked to a caller organisation called Saint Raphael, which has produced much campaigns - astatine slightest 2 of which look to person been filmed successful Angelholm session successful Ukraine, arsenic nan clinic's unique wood panelling and unit uniforms tin beryllium seen.

Olena, Viktoriia's mother, says her girl has been diagnosed pinch different encephalon tumour. She says she is sickened by nan findings of our investigation.

"When your kid is… hanging connected nan separator of life, and someone's retired there, making money disconnected that. Well, it's filthy. It's humor money."

The BBC contacted Tetiana Khaliavka and Alex Kohen, and nan organisations Chance Letikva, Walls of Hope, Saint Raphael, Little Angels and Saint Teresa - inviting them to respond to nan allegations made against them. None of them replied.

The Israeli Corporations Authority, which oversees nan country's non-profit organisations, told america that if it has grounds founders are utilizing entities arsenic "a screen for forbidden activity", past registration wrong Israel whitethorn beryllium denied and nan laminitis could beryllium barred from moving successful nan sector.

UK regulator, nan Charity Commission, advises those wishing to donate to charities to cheque that those associations are registered, and that nan due fundraising regulator should beryllium contacted if successful doubt.

Additional reporting by: Ned Davies, Tracks Saflor, Jose Antonio Lucio, Almudena Garcia-parrado, Vitaliya Kozmenko, Shakked Auerbach, Tom Tzur Wisfelder, Katya Malofieieva, Anastasia Kucher, Alan Pulido and Neil McCarthy

• If you person immoderate accusation to adhd to this investigation please interaction simi@bbc.co.uk