‘One of the worst’: Deltona man defrauds nonprofits by posing as cancer patient, sheriff says

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — A Deltona man has been arrested on charges that he defrauded a nonprofit by lying about being a cancer patient, according to Volusia County deputies.

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“I have seen a lot of morally reprehensible scams in my career, but this has to be one of the worst,” said Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood.

Chitwood said he was contacted by a Tampa-area nonprofit that pays living expenses for cancer patients while they’re undergoing treatment or in recovery.

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The nonprofit’s leader told Chitwood that a Deltona man defrauded the organization by posing as a cancer patient and received $5,000 in assistance.

Deputies said the man posed as “Sally Holmes” who was out of work and undergoing treatment for breast cancer.

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Detectives said they investigated the claims and arrested 69-year-old Timothy Bartlett last week on charges of grand theft and organized scheme to defraud.

Deputies said Bartlett ran the same scam to defraud four other nonprofits in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Tennessee, and Wisconsin.

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The organizations all pay living expenses for patients battling breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and pediatric cancer, deputies said.

“I owe a sincere thank you to the founder of the nonprofit who reached out and made this case possible, and to the detectives who gathered all the evidence to put this scumbag in jail where he belongs,” Chitwood said.

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