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Red Cross to release results of fraud inquiry:Posted By: Theodore Taylor By Tom Vanden Brook, USA TODAY The American Red Cross plans this week to turn over the results of its investigation into allegations of fraud and waste in its Hurricane Katrina relief efforts to authorities for possible criminal prosecution.Carrie Martin, a spokeswoman for the Red Cross, said Sunday that three volunteers had been dismissed as a result of the charity's investigation. "The allegations have to do with issues of fraud, waste and abuse," Martin said. She said she did not have details but most of the allegations involved relief work in Louisiana. The names of those dismissed were not being released, she said. "Unfortunately, after a disaster, somebody tries to make a buck," she said. The Red Cross has received enough donations and pledges to cover the more than $2 billion cost of its hurricane relief in 2005, according to the charity. More than 225,000 disaster-relief workers, 95% of them volunteers, participated in relief efforts in response to Hurricane Katrina. The storm, which hit the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, killed at least 1,300 people and destroyed or damaged 300,000 homes. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax-exempt organizations such as the Red Cross, issued a statement saying he would meet with the charity's leaders this week to discuss its plans for reform. The Red Cross is chartered by the federal government to respond to disasters. The Red Cross, Grassley said in his statement, did not take internal complaints of fraud and misuse of funds seriously enough until he drew attention to them. He has led a congressional investigation into the charity's response to Katrina. He said the Red Cross had problems tracking resources, supplies, and volunteers after Hurricane Katrina. Grassley was traveling Sunday and could not be reached for comment, said his spokeswoman, Beth Pellett Levine. Martin said the Red Cross is determined to root out corruption and has recovered $2 million in assistance that was illegally received. "Nobody takes these allegations more seriously," she said. The results of the Red Cross investigation will be released publicly, Martin said. Courtesy Of: Yahoo! News The information reported above is property of Yahoo! inc. and reprinted or modified with legitimate permission. We thank Yahoo! inc. for the kind cooperation with us and other shareholders. |
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