Attack victim Stephen Termini said his son would not give him any funds raised by the public in the wake of the attack that shocked the nation.
American tourist Stephen, who was rescued from a brutal attack near Talbot Street in Dublin in July, claims he has not seen a cent of the $130,000 raised by his son Mike Rizzuto on the ‘GoFundMe’ website – and now he claims it was “stolen” from him, reports The Mirror.
However, speaking to this newspaper, Mr Rizzuto said the thousands of donations from the Irish public “technically never” belonged to his father, adding that the funds were to be used to pay for his and his brother’s travel to Ireland, accommodation and possible expense including Father’s medical bills, reports The Mirror.
“I’m withholding it until I figure out with an accountant taxes and stuff. Based on technicality it was never his. Like it never hit his account. It was for the intended travel so that we could take care of him and if there were medical bills presented to me that I would take care of it as much as I could,” Mr Rizzuto, who admits he’s not currently on speaking terms with his dad, said, reports The Mirror.
However, in an interview with this newspaper, Termini, who has now returned to Buffalo, New York, sensationally claimed that his son Mike “stole” the money for himself and now does not answer his calls.
“I have to tell you something, that GoFundMe thing my son set up, he stole all that money. He didn’t give me any of that money. My heart is broken over it. He won’t answer my calls, won’t call me back. I don’t know what happened with his mentality,” he said, reports The Mirror.
Mr. Rizzuto’s GoFundMe page, which has raised a total of $133,516, includes a photo of him, his father and his brother Jesse and a statement asking people to “send healing vibes to my father” after the “brutal” attack that left him struggling for his life in the hospital.
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