Amaral Defence Fund Closure

PJGA Blogspot ANNOUNCEMENT - 'Sufficient' October 21st 2015

Dear friends,
Since it was started on April 29, 2015, by Leanne Baulch, the gofundme page dedicated to Gonçalo Amaral's defence has collected donations in excess of 50 thousand pounds. These funds have been transferred to the bank account that is held by Dr Paulo Sargento and other friends of Mr Amaral. Less than half of this amount has been spent on legal expenses for the defence of Gonçalo Amaral.

The Paypal account that is associated to the bank account has received over 6 thousand euro during the same period. Donations totaling a smaller amount have also been made directly to the bank account.
We believe that it is time to close the gofundme page, as the bank account currently stands at an amount that seems largely sufficient to face eventual future expenses.

As we await the verdict of the Appellate Court of Lisbon on the appeal that has been filed by Mr Amaral's lawyer, the remaining funds will be kept in the bank account. They will be used if necessary in the future. Any unused funds will, as we stated in 2009, be donated to a Portuguese children's charity.

May we use this moment to wholeheartedly thank those who have expressed their support of Gonçalo Amaral's right to an appropriate defence? Whether you have contributed financially or by sending a support message - you have made an impact. You have made a difference.

Thank you so very, very much.

PLEASE NOTE:
Only the GoFundMe page will be closed on the 28th October, 2015.

The PJGA Donations page will still be available at http://PJGA.Blogspot.com

WELL DONE TO EVERYONE WHO HAS SUPPORTED THE FUND x

We know Mr. Amaral is ethically superior to the McCanns who continue to beg for funds to allegedly continue the search for Madeleine. The Go Fund Me account will be closing soon but I am happy the PJGA account will remain open for those who wish to support him in his legal battle with the McCanns, however long it takes. Well done to all who have contributed to this worthy cause!!

Like Nigel, the Defence Fund request on Mr. Amaral's behalf was only for what was needed.

Well done everyone
Good Snr Amaral, with your appeal

I've just received an e-mail from the Go Fund Me Legal Defence Fund which includes Up-Date #26 and also indicates a recent donation from "KJM" in the amount of l,000 pound bringing the total to 52,180 pound. I'm so delighted at the amazing support Mr. Amaral continues to receive.

£52,210 of £25k now https://www.gofundme.com/Legal-DefencePJGA
 

And a new article in the Portugal resident


http://portugalresident.com/amaral-supporters-call-time-as-appeal-fund-approaches-%E2%82%AC70000



Posted by portugalpress on October 22, 2015
Amaral supporters call time as appeal fund approaches €70,000

Amaral supporters call time as appeal fund approaches €70,000
For reasons that are remaining very quiet, the friends and supporters of former “Maddie cop” Gonçalo Amaral have called time on the gofundme online appeal set up to fund his legal expenses as he challenges the court decision ordering him to pay the parents of Madeleine McCann over €500,000 in damages.

The Legal Defence for Gonçalo Amaral page will be closing on Wednesday, October 28.

At time of writing, it had already raised over €69,860 and donations were still coming in.

The latest, as of lunchtime today (Thursday), was for €100.

Over the last five months, 2,757 people have responded to the gofundme campaign, set up by a young single mother from Birmingham who was only 14 when Madeleine went missing.

Leanne Baulch, 22, explained to us back in May that she had never imagined the response her initiative received, but she felt compelled to do it as she was “desperate to help” a man she felt was being “persecuted”.

But as the money flowed in, so too did the unpleasantness, including slurs in the British press that the fund was powered by “sick online trolls”.

With Ms Baulch considering her position as a single parent of a toddler, she removed herself from the process altogether a few months ago.

The fund then transferred into the hands of the friends of the former PJ detective whose book, “A Verdade da Mentira”, landed him in the hot seat of litigation - with all his assets, including bank accounts “frozen” - in 2008.

Unpleasantness appears nonetheless to have continued, with internet manipulation of the appeal’s online code so that a few weeks ago, it virtually disappeared from sight (see http://portugalresident.com/online-intrigue-as-mccanns-close-twitter-pag...).

Now those in charge of the fund have decided it should close.

Using the headline “Sufficient” - which translated into Portuguese also stands for “Enough” - they have said: “We believe that it is time to close the gofundme page, as the bank account currently stands at an amount that seems largely sufficient to face eventual future expenses”.

A source has confirmed to the Resident that other forms of fundraising remain open, while Amaral’s fundraisers are aware that whatever the result of the latest appeal being considered by Lisbon’s Appellate Court, litigation will continue.

“If Amaral is successful, for example, we remain fairly certain that the McCann’s would appeal that decision. And so it continues. The next step would be the Supreme Court and then after that the Constitutional Court”.

And should Amaral lose the fight which he feels centres on his right to freedom of expression then a new online appeal will be needed to fund a case against Portuguese justice in the European Court of Human Rights.

Thus, for now, it is a case of “serenely awaiting” the next judicial decision, while Amaral’s supporters are no less determined to keep funding avenues open.

Sending out the latest message to subscribers, the group of friends writing collectively said: “May we use this moment to wholeheartedly thank those who have expressed their support for Gonçalo Amaral’s right to an appropriate defence. Whether you have contributed financially or by sending a support message, you have made an impact. You have made a difference”.

As we wrote this article, yet another donation was received as the six-day countdown to closure begins.

Meantime, fund organisers continue to confirm that they will donate any money left unused on legal expenses to a Portuguese children’s charity.

natasha.donn@algarveresident.com

- See more at: http://portugalresident.com/amaral-supporters-call-time-as-appeal-fund-approaches-%E2%82%AC70000#sthash.tbkQRwwT.dpuf