A heartless mother faked her own child’s cancer diagnosis to collect thousands of pounds from a charity.

Charlotte Blackwell focused on a fund set up in memory of three-year-old Morgan Ridler, who died of a rare form of liver cancer.

His parents had raised money to help other families, but were cruelly swindled out of £4,000 by Blackwell.

The 40-year-old approached Morgan’s mother Natalie Ridler, 33, and asked for help from the organization Morgan’s Army Charitable Foundation.

She claimed that her child, who had been ill before, was now ill again and was receiving palliative care.

Blackwell set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for treatment, prompting Natalie to support her son and donate money just months after he passed away.

But it later turned out that Blackwell’s claims were completely false, leaving Natalie feeling “sick.”

“They had me fooled for two weeks while my heart broke for them,” Natalie said, heartbroken, of Blackwell’s ploy.

Blackwell, from Bridgend, South Wales, admitted fraud but avoided prison and was given a suspended sentence.

Natalie said Blackwell “exploited us at one of our most vulnerable moments, emotionally manipulated us and took advantage of the situation.”

“A few months ago I was approached by someone who was very upset because her child had had a relapse,” Natalie says.

‘We are known as a family with cancer and that is why they passed the test at our first checks.

“They were very upset about the prospect of having to go through it again, but also about the opportunities that had apparently been given to them.”

Natalie says she provided Blackwell with “emotional support” and financial help for weeks after the scammer told her they were raising money for treatment in Germany.

After donating through the fundraising page, Natalie discovered that Blackwell had also directly messaged her charity donors asking them for money.

Then she investigated further and realized it was all a scam.

“It turned out that a few years ago a child of this person had cancer and had been treated at Noah’s Ark. That’s why they didn’t get through our check-ups initially,” Natalie said.

However, they had been in remission for some time, without active treatment, without a terminal prognosis and were, in layman’s terms, ‘completely healthy’.

‘Fortunately, all funds released to the individual were frozen and recovered when the fraudulent activity came to light. The charity suffered no financial loss as a result.

“They behaved horribly for weeks, knowing that they were lying and taking advantage of me.”

Blackwell, of Cefn Glas, Bridgend, pleaded guilty to fraudulently receiving money from Morgan’s Army in an attempt to gain £4,000 for himself at Bridgend Police Court.

She was given a 10-month suspended sentence and a four-month curfew, monitored by a tag, when she was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court. She must also carry out 180 hours of unpaid work and pay £150 costs and a surcharge.

Morgan died of cancer on June 28 last year, a few days before his fourth birthday. He was diagnosed with a rare and complex form of cancer in October 2021 at the age of two.

After the sentencing, his mother added: “This person in particular was the parent of a child in remission and it amazes me that someone who has been through the same thing could do the same thing to another family with cancer.”

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