Scammers created a fake online fundraiser for a 14-year-old boy who drowned in the River Thames, authorities and his football club confirmed. Banta Sillah died on Tuesday after jumping into the water at Millwall Outer Dock amid a heatwave.
Within hours of the teenager being publicly identified, a GoFundMe page with a £6,000 target appeared, soliciting donations for his burial and memorial. The page quickly garnered over £3,000 from the public before it was taken down.
Frontline Community FC, Banta's football club, urged those who had donated to report the fraudulent page to GoFundMe and request refunds. The club stated they had been unable to verify the page's legitimacy despite multiple attempts.
GoFundMe informed the Daily Mail that no funds were released to the organizer and all donors would be refunded. The platform has since removed the campaign. The fake fundraiser's listed organizer, "Banta Silluh," bore a resemblance to the deceased teenager's name.
The club later confirmed that an official fundraiser had been established at the request of Banta's family. "The family have confirmed they are not aware of this being created on their behalf," the club stated in an Instagram story. "The GoFundMe page is unverified and family are unaware! Please report and request a refund immediately!"
In a subsequent post, Frontline Community FC clarified that the GoFundMe page was not created, authorized, or endorsed by the Sillah family. They asked the public not to donate to or share the fraudulent fundraiser. The club is now managing the only official fundraiser for the family through LaunchGood.
Banta was the captain of Frontline Community FC and was instrumental in the team's recent Tower Hamlets cup victory. Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Lutfur Rahman, paid tribute to Banta, calling him a "much-loved" and "true leader" with "immense potential."
The club described Banta as a "role model" who naturally exuded leadership and encouraged his teammates. He had also begun taking steps into coaching, volunteering with the club's Under-12s team, where he built a strong bond with the young players.
Signs in the area near Canary Wharf, where the incident occurred, warned against unauthorized swimming and highlighted the dangers of deep water. Emergency services were called to the scene shortly before 7 p.m. after reports of a boy in difficulty in the water. Despite a search, Banta was retrieved from the dock at 10:30 p.m. and pronounced dead. One local witness reported seeing children pressuring another child to enter the river.