SNOW HILL, Md. — An Eastern Shore mother is accused of embezzling and stealing money from a non-profit she created in honor of her late son.
Tiffany Knupp and her ex-husband Raymond established the Gavin Knupp Foundation after the 14-year-old was tragically killed in a hit and run crash back in July 2022.
The non-profit foundation in Gavin's memory originally aimed to give back to neighborhood youth by hosting local events and fundraisers.
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The couple ended up in a bitter divorce, leading to allegations against Tiffany, which claimed she used foundation funds to pay her personal divorce attorney.
Tiffany allegedly told Maryland State Police the foundation's board authorized the attorney's fees.
But according to charging documents, current and former board members denied approving such expenses.
Detectives spoke with Tiffany's divorce lawyer, who clarified she was not hired to represent the foundation.
Court papers detail two foundation fundraisers that Tiffany supposedly profited from.
One was held at Shaka Pool Bar to benefit the family of Carter Figgs, a high school football player who was killed in an October 2023 crash in Salisbury.
As president of the foundation, Tiffany vowed to match any proceeds raised.
The total amount was $3200, meaning $6400 should've been donated to Carter's family.
Prosecutors say Tiffany never deposited money made from the bar into the foundation's bank account, and in fact only wrote Carter's family a check of $4,200, pocketing the difference.
Another example is when Tiffany made a deal with a company called Shirts Fast LLC. to sell merchandise on their website for the foundation.
Shirts Fast ultimately wrote out a $1925 check to Tiffany with the understanding it would be deposited into the foundation account.
Charging documents suggest Tiffany instead put the money in her own personal bank account.
In total, Tiffany allegedly stole $12,625.
"Tiffany Knupp was entrusted with overseeing the Gavin Knupp Foundation, but it is clear that she betrayed that trust," detectives wrote in charging documents.
She faces nine separate counts, five of them felonies.
Tiffany's attorney Thomas Maronick Jr. released a lengthy statement calling the charges "completely bogus, based on distortions of the truth or blatant inaccuracies."
"She is completely innocent of all charges and we await our day in court where we will be able to face these allegations head on and show the truth." said Maronick Jr. "Tiffany is a person who has stood up in her life for others. She has faced overwhelming pain and then more than a year of media attention following her son’s death while she’s worked to be the best mother she can be, a strong advocate for the community, a business owner and friend to many. Under Tiffany’s leadership the Foundation has donated thousands of dollars to families in need and continues to support local families of those who have lost children."
Tiffany is currently free and due in court on July 23.
Since the Worcester County State's Attorney's Office is handling prosecution of Gavin's alleged killer, they've handed Tiffany's case off to the Somerset County State's Attorney's Office.
