According to a report at NBC Philadelphia, the entire Johnny Bobbitt story was a scam from the beginning. Prosecutors are apparently alleging the three people involved cooked up the scheme together as a way to raise money from unsuspecting dupes.

The New Jersey couple who became famous for raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for a homeless man after he helped with their disabled car — as did the homeless man himself — will all face charges for allegedly providing a false story in order to raise money for themselves, a source familiar with the case told NBC10.

Mark D’Amico, Kate McClure and Johnny Bobbitt will face charges including conspiracy and theft by deception, according to the source.

A complaint obtained by NBC10 alleges that the three conspired with one another to make up a false story in order to raise more than $400,000.

In case you’ve forgotten the details, Bobbitt is the homeless man who supposedly gave up his last $20 dollars to help a stranger named Kate McClure buy gas to get home. In return, McClure and her boyfriend Mark D’Amico launched a GoFundMe campaign telling the inspiring story and raising money to get Bobbitt off the street. That campaign eventually raised $400,000, from people eager to help the homeless man with the heart of gold.

That’s when the real trouble began.

The couple and Bobbitt, who only initially hoped to raise about $10,000, suddenly had this huge sum of money and national attention to go with it. Bobbitt eventually went to the Philly Inquirer and said he was back on the street while the couple was spending his money on vacations. In return, the couple went on Megyn Kelly’s show and said Bobbitt had a drug problem and was using the cash to get high.

At the time, I believed the couple if only because Bobbitt had admitted he was a drug addict. Others believed Bobbitt was being robbed by an unscrupulous couple. For its part, GoFundMe promised all the money would go to Bobbitt as intended. But it appears there were no victims in this story, only con men (and women) looking to take advantage of the rest of us and, eventually, each other.

Given the twists and turns this story has already seen, I’m going to avoid drawing any more conclusions about who is telling the truth until the case is settled. According to NBC News, D’Amico and McClure surrendered themselves to authorities on Wednesday. Bobbitt’s current whereabouts are unknown. Prosecutors are expected to make a public announcement about the case at 2 pm eastern today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj6jzaGgkzM