Laís Basílio (23) raised more than €5,000 through the fundraiser over the summer.
Laís Basílio (23) raised more than €5,000 through the fundraiser over the summer, claiming that she learned she had cancer at the end of last year and desperately needed a bone marrow transplant.
She said that she had not been working since the diagnosis and wasn’t receiving “any help from the government”, instead living off her savings and asking friends for financial help.
Laís Basílio deleted most of her social media content after apologising for the fraud
“I decided to create this fundraiser to help me pay the bills and also because I want to bring my mother to be here with me. I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart and any help is welcome,” the appeal said.
In a video posted on an Instagram account back in May, Laís claims: “I have been fighting cancer for many months and I am currently in need and have only 47 days to find a type O negative bone marrow donor.
“So, if you have blood type O negative, you have not consumed alcohol in the last three months, you have not had a tattoo during this period, you are between 18 and 35 years old, please contact me and I will send you a direct message.
“If you want to know a little more about my fight, my story too, you can take a look at my Instagram, there is a whole explanation and a summary and I would be very grateful if I could count on you. Thank you very much for everything.”
But internet sleuths soon began to grow suspicious of her tale when they noticed inconsistencies in her story and a woman who shared her story online later changed the caption of her video to say that Laís “just confessed” to being a “fraud”, adding that her cancer claims were “all lies”.
Oi.ie reports that concerned members of the Brazilian community in Ireland questioned her on why she never appeared in the hospital photos she posted and claimed she was spotted in a Dublin nightclub the day after her supposed bone marrow transplant.
On Saturday, August 10, Basílio posted an Instagram apology video admitting her deceit.
“I started this by showing my face here, and I’ll end it by showing my face. I’m here to take responsibility for this, and I would really like to apologise to the entire Brazilian community and the entire oncology society. I sincerely hope that after this passes, you all continue to receive support,” she said.
She also stated that her family and friends were unaware of her bogus fundraiser, which has since been taken down.
“It’s important to make clear that none of my family members were involved. I did everything by myself. Regardless of what happens, I’m ready to take responsibility for this. They believed it just like everyone else.
“I hope you forgive me and that everything can be resolved in the best possible way,” she added.
A spokesperson for GoFundMe confirmed that the 279 people who contributed to the fundraiser will get their money back in a statement to sundayworld.com, saying: “As is always the case on GoFundMe, donors are covered by the GoFundMe guarantee and will be refunded”.
Community group Amor, Simples de Doar, which supports Brazilians with cancer in Ireland and had previously platformed Basílio’s fundraiser, said it was “deeply disappointed” by the incident.
“We are deeply disappointed with the recent news, but we will not stop. There are other people who really need help, and we will focus our energy on continuing to give love and support,” a spokesperson said in a social media post.
“We would like to reinforce that our group, Amor, Simples de Doar, was raised with love and dedication, counting on the collaboration of volunteers motivated by a genuine desire to help.
“It is important to clarify that our group is not an NGO, does not have lucrative purposes and does not receive any type of financial resource from the campaigns that we disclose. These bells are raised by their own patients or by their families.”
