N.C. Man’s Nonprofit Ties and Wealth Claims Questioned
October 13, 2009 | Read Time: 1 minute
A North Carolina man’s wide-ranging nonprofit work has come under scrutiny following allegations that he misused organizations’ money and exaggerated his wealth and philanthropic connections, The Charlotte Observer reports.
John Knox Bridges was ousted in July as president of the Lindbergh Foundation, in Anoka, Minn., over $600,000 in questionable investments and expenses. According to the newspaper, he repaid the money with funds from the foundation that runs the N.C. Transportation Museum, on whose board he served.
Mr. Bridges has also donated to or served with other nonprofit groups, including the Charlotte History Museum and the Catch-a-Dream Foundation, in Mississippi, but the Observer alleges that in cultivating high-profile connections, he falsely claimed to be a member of the Guggenheim Museum and World Health Organization boards and to come from a billionaire family with a large charitable trust.
A lawyer for Mr. Bridges disputed the newspaper’s account.
