- Fundraisers created to raise money for one of the men found guilty of murdering Ahmaud Arbery have been removed this week.
- A spokesperson for GoFundMe told NBC
News that three campaigns for William "Roddie" Bryan were shut down.
Several fundraisers for one of the men convicted for the death of
GoFundMe told NBC News that three fundraisers for William "Roddie" Bryan, who filmed Arbery's death, were removed because the platform "prohibits raising money for the legal defense of a violent crime."
The
Kevin Gough, Bryan's attorney who took jabs at Black pastors who supported the Arbery family during the trial, opposed GoFundMe's decision to remove the pages.
"The right to counsel, a guarantee enshrined in our Constitution, means little if ordinary people like Roddie Bryan cannot raise funds for their own defense -- and that includes the right to raise funds for an appeal," Gough said in a Facebook post, WJXT reported.
Gough's post continued: "The cancellation of legitimate online efforts to raise funds for Roddie Bryan is simply the latest manifestation of a woke left mob mentality that relentlessly seeks to undermine the institutions of our government," according to the news station.
Gough shared another fundraiser for Bryan on a different crowdfunding platform called Spot Fund, but it was later shut down, WJXT reported.
Last month, Bryan, Travis McMichael, Gregory McMichael were found guilty of murdering Arbery. The 25-year-old was chased, shot, and killed while jogging in a neighborhood near Brunswick, Georgia, in February 2020. Arbery's death ignited a wave of protests against racial injustice across the US last year.
According to NBC News, Bryan and the McMichaels face life behind bars.