Minnesota Attorney General Settles with Sturgis Charity Ride over Misleading Claims

A group that falsely claimed to have donated to a veterans charity at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally has been shut down and ordered to pay up after stiffing a Veterans group.

In a 13-page document filed last month in Ramsey County District Court, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced that a settlement has been reached with Ride to The Chip (RTTC), which ran an event that allegedly raised money for the Magnus Veterans Foundation (MVF).

The fundraiser, at the 2022 rally, included a motorcycle ride from the Twin Cities to Sturgis and promised that 100 percent of the proceeds would be donated to MVF.

After the rally, Ellison’s office began investigating the organization after receiving a complaint that a donation did not go to the charity.

The investigation found that as a part of their contract, MVF paid RTTC a down payment of $3,800, and RTTC agreed to raise funds for MVF.

Ellison’s office says that RTTC falsely claimed that 100% of the funds it raised would go to charity when a portion actually went to profit. RTTC also reportedly did not disclose its for-profit status to donors.

As part of the settlement, RTTC and its founders, Tyrone Creer and Alice Arenson, are banned from future fundraising and must pay MVF the money it had claimed it donated.

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Within 90 days, Creer and Arenson must return MFV"s down payment of $3,800 and the remaining $447.38 they owe under their contract.

Creer and Arenson also face a civil penalty of $75,000 if they violate any provision of the settlement.

Ellison issued the following statement on the settlement:

'It is unacceptable for a fundraiser hired by a charity to keep money they specifically raised for that charity and we further won’t allow groups to falsely claim every penny of donations will go to charity when some of the money lines their own pockets. People who fundraise for charities need to register with our Office and follow the rules intended to make sure these dollars go to help the public and that donors are properly informed.'