Boston woman pleads not guilty to fraudulently accepting marathon charity money
BOSTON – A Boston woman has pleaded not guilty to fraudulently receiving thousands of dollars by claiming she was injured in the Boston Marathon bombing.
Joanna Leigh was arraigned Monday on charges of larceny and making a false claim to a government agency. She was released without bail and ordered to surrender her passport. Her attorney said she’s “a very fragile person.”
Authorities say Leigh was at the April 2013 marathon, but wasn’t hurt. But the 41-year-old says did suffer traumatic brain injuries and the charges are retaliation for her criticism of The One Fund victims’ charity for not helping people with such injuries.
Prosecutors say Leigh got $8,000 from The One Fund; $18,000 from a state victims’ compensation fund; $9,000 from an online fundraiser and $1,700 raised by Boston school students.
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