Lachlan Morganti, a 22-year-old from Australia, has admitted to stealing $65,000 from a GoFundMe campaign intended for the McGuire family.
In April 2024, Morganti established a GoFundMe page to support the McGuire family after their daughter, Hannah McGuire, was tragically found deceased in a wrecked vehicle in Ballarat.
Morganti, who had connections to the McGuire family through their ties to the Clunes Cricket Club and Clunes National Hotel, was able to raise $65,000 through this online fundraising effort.
The court proceedings revealed that Morganti had the funds from the GoFundMe transferred into his personal bank account, which he mistakenly forwarded to Debbie McGuire, Hannah’s mother.
Sadly, Morganti has now pleaded guilty to the theft of all the funds raised. Prosecutors informed the Ballarat Magistrates Court that the McGuire family “has not received a cent of the fundraising efforts.”
During the hearings, it came to light that Morganti battled a gambling addiction, leading to allegations that within five days, he squandered the entire raised amount attempting to recover financial losses from his gambling debts.
According to reports from the ABC, the charge stated that Morganti allegedly misappropriated $64,541.75 from the online fundraiser between April 25 and April 30, 2024.
In the gaming community, Morganti is recognized as Lmorgn7_ on TikTok, where he has amassed over 11,000 followers. He was known for streaming daily, sharing his finds and experiences in the popular game, Pokémon Go.
Morganti frequently posted clips from his gameplay on this account, with many videos receiving tens of thousands of views from his engaged audience.
Popular Pokémon Go streamer Lmorgz7 on TikTok has been found guilty of stealing $65,000 from a murder victim’s GoFundMe by u/TOTMbrother in pokemongo
Viewers of Morganti’s Pokémon Go streams have taken to social media to “raise awareness”and encourage others to stop financially supporting him.
One user on Reddit commented, “I’m also from [Morganti’s] town, so I know [he] is the streamer.” They went on to express that they had “often seen him walking around the lake asking people to subscribe (donate) to get in the raids there.”
Another user shared, “Omfg, I literally just came across this guy on TikTok (and followed him) a few days ago! Time to go remove him.”
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