Woman facing two felony charges for online impersonation of flood victim’s family member

A woman accused of posing as the family of a Hill Country flooding victim to obtain online donations has been arrested in Florida by the U.S. Marshals Service, according to Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen.  Maitlin White, 28, was taken into custody in Okaloosa County, Florida, by a task force with the U.S. Marshals Service, Rosen said.

She was charged on Jan. 2 with two felonies for online impersonation in connection with the scam and is now facing extradition from Florida back to Texas.  White allegedly used GoFundMe and SpotMe to trick people into donating to accounts created to support the family of a Camp Mystic counselor, 18-year-old Chloe Childress, killed in the Fourth of July floods in Kerr County.

Authorities say they discovered that White used her own phone number, email address and bank routing number to create the accounts.  White had allegedly told the constable’s office that she’s a single mother of two, “looking for a quick way to make some money.”

Rosen said that White will soon be brought to Harris County by sheriff’s deputies to face the charges.