History Main / InvoluntaryCharityDonation

* A 2020 ransomware campaign donated part of the illicit proceeds to charities. Predictably, the charities wanted nothing to with the money. <!-- https://www.zdnet.com/article/ransomware-gang-donates-part-of-ransom-demands-to-charity-organizations/ -->

* This is Moriarty's final humiliation in ''Film/SherlockHolmesAGameOfShadows''--the money he'd raised from WarForFunAndProfit gets pilfered by Sherlock's own machinations and paid to a fund for widows and orphans of war. Sherlock details meticulously how Moriarty lost his fortune all while scoring a SurpriseCheckMate against Moriarty in a game of [[SmartPeoplePlayChess chess]], the last plays of which were done in their heads.

* Whoopi Goldberg's character, the psychic Oda Mae Brown, does to the villain in ''Film/{{Ghost}}'': With Sam's help, she's able to steal the money from its special account, turn it into a check and donate it to a nuns' charity.

* As payback for an attempted double-cross by [[EnemyMine Benedict]] in ''[[Film/OceansEleven Ocean's Thirteen]]'', the crew donates his entire share of the profits to charity in his name. Shortly afterward, Danny, Rusty, and Linus watch Benedict talk to [[Series/TheOprahWinfreyShow Oprah]] about his "sudden burst of generosity". He (somewhat) willingly goes along with it, recognizing both the bad publicity of taking it back and the good publicity of saying he did it.

* ''WesternAnimation/LaffALympics'' #7 (Marvel, Sept. 1978) had "The Purple Pig Puzzle," in which a famous gambler, [[PunnyName Lucky Starr]] won the charity money that the Laff-A-Lympics athletes raised. To get it back, he challenges them to search for a ceramic purple pig and gives clues to who has it with a cash bonus to the winner. To hedge his bet, he not only bets $20 million on the Rottens but he has his henchmen help the Rottens. It's Super Snooper who deduces who eventually has the Purple Pig (it was in Captain Caveman's club), and when Lucky Starr tries to take it on the lam, Dynomutt delivers him to the Coast Guard. Flanked by Dynomutt and Yogi Bear, Starr sheepishly says all the money in his suit case is earmarked for charity.
* In the UsefulNotes/WorldWarI comic, ''Charley's War,'' when Charley Bourne returns to London after being injured in the Western Front, he discovers that his no good brother in-law stole jewelry from the victims of a Zeppelin air raid. As punishment, Charley forces him to donate every penny he's made from fencing his ill-gotten gain, to a soldier's relief charity.

* ''FanFic/VigilanteTendency'': The head of most powerful crime family in Asia runs afoul with a small-time Yakuza group called the Momokyokai. Now aware of them and the existence of their ally -- who he believes to be another small-time family -- he demands 50% of the revenue from their last operation and gives them a bank account to deposit future payments. A week later, the Difo family is crippled after Tsuna hands said financial information to Shoichi, who summarily donates all of the Difo's money to numerous charities.

* As payback for an attempted double-cross by [[EnemyMine Benedict]] in ''[[Film/OceansEleven Ocean's Thirteen]]'', the crew donates his entire share of the profits to charity in his name. Shortly afterward, Danny, Rusty, and Linus watch Benedict talk to [[Series/TheOprahWinfreyShow Oprah]] about his "sudden burst of generosity". He (somewhat) willingly goes along with it, recognizing both the bad publicity of taking it back, and the good publicity of saying he did it.

* Happens in ''Series/HannahMontana'' when Miley and Lilly are trying to stop the AlphaBitch from winning a prize. However besides the usual twists that they end up having to donate the money to charity, the girl they were trying to get to win is okay with losing, because it means even more money raised for the charity.

* ''Series/HomeAndAway'': Eric Dalby, prior to his FaceHeelTurn, managed to frame someone else for an arson he did, and claimed the reward money from people who knows he's the true culprit. As he comes onto stage to collect the cheque, Alf and Dan whip it away from him and announce that he's donating the money to charity.
* In ''Series/ILoveLucy,'' Ricky tells Lucy he'll take her and Ethel if they can raise the money for tickets to Europe. Lucy then comes up with two fictitious women that need to make their way to Europe, and raises money for them. Lucy orders Ethel to give the two women their ticket money after a detective told Lucy they would go to jail for running a charity scam.

* ''Series/PowerRangersTimeForce'''s "A Parting of Ways": After the MonsterOfTheWeek captures a bus load of children and holds them for a ransom of 10 million dollars, Wes (the Red Ranger) goes to his RichSnob father to ask for the money. His father refuses, so Wes tricks a business client of his father into giving him a check. Eventually the Rangers manage to save the children without giving the ransom, but Wes' father is angry with Wes for what he did. Then the press finds out about the money, and thinks Mr Collins has donated it willingly to free the hostages. Wes, who by now is fed up with his father, tells the press it was Mr. Collins' idea that he is going to donate the money to charity before packing his stuff and leaving the house.
* ''Series/{{Probe}}'''s "[[Recap/ProbeComputerLogicPart2 Computer Logic, Part 2]]": After Crossover was placed in charge of the city's utility companies, it began a PennyShaving scheme where it added on a few extra cents on everyone's bill, so that it could spend the money on donations. By the time its creator asks about the theft, it had already earned/donated a million dollars that way.

* In ''Theatre/TheMerchantOfVenice'', after Shylock takes Antonio to court in Act IV, the trial reaches its climax when Shylock demands justice and Bassanio's offer to reimburse him for Antonio's loan is rejected, and Judge Balthasar (who is Portia in disguise) declares that Shylock is entitled to exactly one pound of flesh, but no blood can be shed, and the flesh cannot be even the smallest bit lighter or heavier than one pound, or he forfeits his fortunes. After relenting, the court finds that because Shylock sought to take Antonio's life, one half of his fortunes are to be awarded to Antonio and the other half goes to the state treasury. After Shylock pleads for mercy of the court, Antonio recommends that Shylock be allowed to keep one half of his fortune, with the other half to be granted to Lorenzo and Jessica as a trust fund, and that Shylock must convert to Christianity.

* Creating expies of both Martin Shkreli and the Music/WuTangClan album ''Once Upon A Time In Shaolin'' in the process, ''VideoGame/WatchDogs2'' features a sidequest where Marcus and the [=DedSec=] team learn of reviled pharmaceutical billionnaire Gene Carcani's love of popular rap artist Bobo Dakes. Upon learning that Dakes is in the middle of making a new album, Carcani offers millions of dollars in an attempt to prevent its public release and keep it to himself. Realising the opportunity, Marcus rips samples of both the new album and Dakes' voice; creating a Bobo Dakes soundboard from the latter and using the former to legitimise their future claims. By hacking into Carcani's living room via his numerous devices, they trick him into paying out his offer - all ''twenty million dollars'' of it - before intercepting the payment and diverting it to a leukemia research charity.

* Inverted by overzealous or outright unscrupulous businesses; some have made charitable donations in the name of people or entities to secure business contracts, government permits, etc. In many jurisdictions however, this is illegal as it's considered a form of bribery.

* People with [[UsefulNotes/PoliticalIdeologies more conservative political views]] sometimes argue that [[IntimidatingRevenueService all taxes are some form of this trope]]. And [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment that's all we're going to say about that]].

[[folder:Anime And Manga]]

[[folder:Film]]

* Whoopi Goldberg's character, the psychic Oda Mae Brown, does to the villain in ''Film/{{Ghost}}'': With Sam's help, she's able to steal the money from its special account, turn it into a check and donate it to a nuns' charity.
* This is Moriarty's final humiliation in ''Film/SherlockHolmesAGameOfShadows''--the money he'd raised from WarForFunAndProfit gets pilfered by Sherlock's own machinations and paid to a fund for widows and orphans of war. Sherlock details meticulously how Moriarty lost his fortune all while scoring a SurpriseCheckMate against Moriarty in a game of [[SmartPeoplePlayChess chess]], the last plays of which were done in their heads.
* At the end of the ''Film/DoubleDragon'' movie, the heroes use the Dragons to possess the defeated villain. The "villain" then donates all of his money to the police department and allows himself to be arrested.
* During the second performance in ''Film/NowYouSeeMe'', the Four Horsemen crack their sponsor's bank account and distribute the money to Hurricane Katrina victims his company had stiffed on their insurance claims.

[[folder:Fan Fic]]
* ''FanFic/VigilanteTendency'': The head of most powerful crime family in Asia runs afoul with a small-time Yakuza group called the Momokyokai. Now aware of them and the existence of their ally -- who he believes to be another small-time family -- he demands 50% of the revenue from their last operation and gives them a bank account to deposit future payments. A week later, the Difo family is crippled after Tsuna hands said financial information to Shoichi, who summarily donates all of the Difo's money to numerous charities.
[[/folder]]

* In ''Film/TheScarecrow'', Carver the villain hacks into good guy Jack [=McEvoy=]'s bank account and donates all of his money to charity. It's part of a scheme to murder Jack and make it look like a suicide.

* ''{{Series/Probe}}'''s "[[Recap/ProbeComputerLogicPart2 Computer Logic, Part 2]]": After Crossover was placed in charge of the city's utility companies, it began a PennyShaving scheme where it added on a few extra cents on everyone's bill, so that it could spend the money on donations. By the time its creator asks about the theft, it had already earned/donated a million dollars that way.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* ''Series/VeronicaMars'': Logan tells a news crew that his father Aaron will be donating half a million dollars to a homeless shelter. His father severely beats him for this.
* The protagonist of the TV series ''Series/{{Pointman}}'' does this in an episode to the person who set him up in the pilot episode, as part of an overall plan to utterly ruin said person.

* Done to Eric Dalby in ''Series/HomeAndAway'' (prior to his FaceHeelTurn). Not only has he managed to frame someone else for an arson he did, he's claimed the reward money from people who knows he's the true culprit. As he comes onto stage to collect the cheque, Alf and Dan whip it away from him and announce that he's donating the money to charity.
* ''Series/PowerRangersTimeForce'' plays with this trope between Red Ranger Wes and his RichSnob father in the episode "A Parting of Ways". After the MonsterOfTheWeek captures a bus load of children and holds them for a ransom of 10 million dollars, Wes goes to his father to ask for the money. His father refuses, so Wes tricks a business client of his father into giving him a check. Eventually the Rangers manage to save the children without giving the ransom, but Wes' father is angry with Wes for what he did. Then the press finds out about the money, and thinks Mr Collins has donated it willingly to free the hostages. Wes, who by now is fed up with his father, tells the press it was Mr. Collins' idea that he is going to donate the money to charity before packing his stuff and leaving the house.
* ''Series/{{Arrow}}'': Felicity does this to Sebastian Blood's bodyguard.
* Liz does this to Jack on ''Series/ThirtyRock'' when they are briefly [[AccidentalMarriage accidentally married]], giving a press conference dressed like a nouveau-riche housewife and [[BriefAccentImitation putting on a thick Long Island accent]]. To add insult to injury, she uses his money to fund "The Jack and Elizabeth Donaghy High School for Teen Drama, the Arts, and ''Feeeelings''," all concepts that repulse him.
-->'''Liz:''' ''[on TV]'' Jack and I pledge five million dollars to create a new generation of choreographers and puppeteers, [[FunetikAksent cloons]], video artists and theatrical jugglers who will ask the world, ''"What is art?"''\\
'''Jack:''' We know what art is! It's paintings of horses!
* ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'': When the action of a hacker causes the death of a SHIELD agent, Agent Coulson gives the one million dollars the hacker received to the family of that agent, then locks an electronic bracelet around the guy's wrist, preventing him from using electronic devices, and strands him in Hong Kong.
* On ''Series/TheListener'', a crime lord's bank account is electronically raided by a double-crossing thief, and the police arrest her. Then they tell the SmugSnake crime lord that the missing funds were (surprise!) apparently disseminated among a whole bunch of children's charities worldwide: as soon as he provides concrete proof that the account's contents were legitimately earned via legal means, they'll start tracking them down. The investigating team's computer expert is nicknamed "Robin Hood" by the others in the denouement.
* On ''Series/MyNameIsEarl'', Earl remembers a list item: conning an old man out of money by making him think he was donating to a charity helping starving children in Africa. He then finds out that Joy had kept the con going throughout their marriage, and after their divorce, and had gotten a couple of other trailer-park women in on it, too. To get the old man his money back, Earl plants a fake will in the man's house (and sends him on a vacation for a week) and sets up a phony lawyer (actually a homeless man that Joy had humiliated in front of the entire Crab Shack) to ask for the $5000 total from the women that the old man had been conned out of.
* The series finale of ''Series/{{Hellcats}}'' has Marti {{blackmail}} the chancellor of Lancer University into retirement over his cover-up of a member of the football team robbing a convenience store. Since it led to an innocent ex-con being wrongfully convicted and sent away effectively for life, she tells him he'll be donating his entire severance package to a cause ''very'' dear to his heart: repealing Tennessee's three-strikes law.

** a worker was dismissed for not donating and a labor court confirmed the dismissal by describing this act as “conduct hostile to the community of the people [...] to be most strongly condemned”

[[folder: Anime And Manga ]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

[[folder: Film ]]

[[folder:FanFic]]

[[folder: Folklore]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

[[folder: New Media ]]

[[folder: Theatre]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* Creating expies of both Martin Shkreli and the Music/WuTangClan album ''Once Upon A Time In Shaolin'' in the process, VideoGame/WatchDogs2 features a sidequest where Marcus and the DedSec team learn of reviled pharmaceutical billionnaire Gene Carcani's love of popular rap artist Bobo Dakes. Upon learning that Dakes is in the middle of making a new album, Carcani offers millions of dollars in an attempt to prevent its public release and keep it to himself. Realising the opportunity, Marcus rips samples of both the new album and Dakes' voice; creating a Bobo Dakes soundboard from the latter and using the former to legitimise their future claims. By hacking into Carcani's living room via his numerous devices, they trick him into paying out his offer - all ''twenty million dollars'' of it - before intercepting the payment and diverting it to a leukemia research charity.

[[folder: Web Comics]]

[[folder: Real Life ]]

%%->''"You will be making an anonymous donation to the Widows and Orphans of War Fund. Bishop to Bishop Eight, [[SurpriseCheckmate Discovered Check]], and incidentally.... '''''Mate'''''.''"
%%-->-- '''Sherlock Holmes''' to Moriarty, ''Film/SherlockHolmesAGameOfShadows''

* This concept is more or less the entire point of ''Folklore/RobinHood,'' who in a time of crisis and unlawful taxation stole from the rich to distribute their wealth among the downtrodden.

Contrast FakeCharity, which is when a ConMan creates a phony organization to [[AFoolAndHisNewMoneyAreSoonParted fleece gullible people into making voluntary donations]].

* People with [[UsefulNotes/PoliticalIdeologies more conservative political views]] sometimes argue that [[IntimidatingRevenueService all taxes are some form of this trope]]. And [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment that's all we're going to say about that]].

* The main character of Creator/JackieChan's ''WhoAmI'' does this to two villains who are exchanging a sum of money electronically.

->''"You will be making an anonymous donation to the Widows and Orphans of War Fund. Bishop to Bishop Eight, [[SurpriseCheckmate Discovered Check]], and incidentally.... '''''Mate'''''.''"
-->-- '''Sherlock Holmes''' to Moriarty, ''Film/SherlockHolmesAGameOfShadows''

Steal a villain's money for yourself, and it may be easy for him to take it back (particularly if he has no compunctions about killing you). But what if you steal it and donate it to charity? Even if he can get it back, there'll probably be no way for him to do so without [[VillainWithGoodPublicity tarnishing his public image]]. Bonus irony is accrued if the charity in some way makes up for the villain's misdeeds.

* The movie ''Film/RatRace'', with the twist that the winners are giving the money they won; they just also made a huge public statement that the multimillionaire who had been using them as human playthings throughout the film would match the donations made in the whole charity event.

* As payback for an attempted double-cross by [[EnemyMine Benedict]] in ''Film/OceansThirteen'', the crew donates his entire share of the profits to charity in his name. Shortly afterward, Danny, Rusty, and Linus watch Benedict talk to [[Series/TheOprahWinfreyShow Oprah]] about his "sudden burst of generosity". He (somewhat) willingly goes along with it, recognizing both the bad publicity of taking it back, and the good publicity of saying he did it.

* Two-Face did this to ''himself'' in his debut appearance, choosing to donate whenever good heads came up and to conduct a robbery when bad heads did.

* ''RepairmanJack'''s Annual Kid Baseball League Charity Drive. Play a helpless tourist/woman, attract a mugger, rob him, fence his valuables, donate, repeat.