Cheating On Dogs, Cats, Etc.

July 3rd, 2012
02:02 PM ET



.. Maureen Miller and Beautiful Drew Griffin report.

Tonight on AC360: Charity Cheats?

When you open your heart and wallet to help a charity, how do you know your money will be put to good use? Tonight we'll bring you a special investigation into charities accused of collecting millions of dollars in donations and not spending it where donors expected.

One of the charities under scrutiny is the Disabled Veterans National Foundation or DVNF. CNN's Drew Griffin discovered there is no sign any of DVNF's cash donations of about $56 million over three years went directly to veterans. Not one dime. Due to CNN's reporting, the Senate Finance Committee is demanding answers from DVNF. The committee is requesting records relating to their fundraising and marketing activities to see if the foundation abused its tax-exempt non-profit status.

Drew tried to get a response from the president of the group, but she slammed a door in his face. So, we tracked down the vice president. You'll hear what she has to say about where all the money is going tonight on the program.

What's remarkable is the Disabled Veterans National Foundation is not the only charity Drew's been highlighting. He's also uncovered another vets group and even one that helps animals called SPCA International. Its signature program is called "Baghdad Pups." They've raised millions to reunite military dogs with U.S. troops and others who serve overseas, but as far as we can tell they don't do that at all.

Of all the charities we've been digging into, they all have one thing in common. All have connections to the fundraising company Quadriga Art, which essentially gets paid to build mailing lists for the charity groups. You'll see what Drew uncovered when he followed the money trail.

We'll also give you tips on what to look for to make sure you're donating to a charity with a good record. Join us for our special investigation tonight at 8 and 10 p.m. ET.