Fake Charity Found Guilty Of Trickery Judge Rules Evidence Of Fraud Overwhelming Against Quests

QUESTS Corp. tricked the government out of 199,000 pounds of surplus food while posing as a Spokane children’s charity, a judge ruled Thursday.

Founders and former administrators Letha Collins and Darryl Hutchison were found guilty of consumer fraud following a hearing in Spokane County Superior Court.

Finding no need for a trial, Judge Paul Bastine said the evidence against Collins and her son is overwhelming and uncontrovertible.

Bastine will decide next month whether to grant the state’s request for $324,000 in civil penalties, restitution and legal costs.

“The state is going to be diligent in pursuing charity fraud,” said Owen Clarke, senior assistant attorney general in Spokane.

“It’s a big problem,” he said. “We see a lot of it, and we have to take strong action to stop it.”

Eleven foundations and businesses, including the prestigious Comstock Foundation, contributed about $26,000 to QUESTS in the early ‘90s.

Clarke said they did so based on QUESTS’ bogus claims of providing treatment to neglected and abused children and getting referrals from child-protection agencies.

QUESTS is out of business today, but Clarke is seeking full restitution for private contributors, $64,000 in civil penalties and $199,000 - or $1 a pound - to compensate the Spokane Food Bank for its loss.

Clarke said, however, he expects to recover only a fraction of the damages because Collins and Hutchison have few remaining assets.

The defendants, who now live in Montana, did not appear in court. Attempts to reach them were unsuccessful.

Their attorney, Tim Durkop, argued that the state had failed to prove its case because it didn’t establish that the misrepresentations were intentional. “I don’t think you can hold my clients’ feet to the fire without showing intent,” he said.

Bastine, however, said there was nothing from QUESTS to refute the attorney general’s stack of affidavits.

“The material I have here from the defense is minimal, to say the least,” the judge said.

, DataTimes