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4-year-old boy bought thousands of dollars worth of popsicles using his mother’s Amazon account

Family friend appeals for donations after Amazon refused to return 918 SpongeBob SquarePants ice treats

Gino Spocchia
Wednesday 05 May 2021 20:09 BST
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A GoFundMe was set up for a Brooklyn mother after her 4-year-old ordered thousands of dollars worth of popsicles
A GoFundMe was set up for a Brooklyn mother after her 4-year-old ordered thousands of dollars worth of popsicles (GoFundMe/Katie Schloss/Jennifer Bryant)

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An online fundraising effort was set up for a mother after her 4-year-old boy bought more than $2,000 (£1,438) worth of SpongeBob SquarePants Popsicles on Amazon.

The child, identified as Noah, is a fan of the cartoon character and ordered 51 cases of the SpongeBob Popsicles, an ice treat, to his aunt’s house in Brooklyn, New York.

A friend of the family, Katie Schloss, wrote in an Instagram post on Monday that 918 Popsicles arrived from Amazon – to the tune of a whopping $2,618.85 (£1,883).

“As (truly!) adorable as this story is, Jennifer Bryant, Noah’s mom, is a social work student at New York University (we took Policy I together) and simply cannot afford this,” wrote Ms Schloss.

According to the post, Amazon refused to return the “fruit punch and cotton candy” flavoured ice treats – with Noah’s mother forced to front the bill.

“Ms Bryant, mom to 3 boys, doesn't know how she's going to be able to pay this off, in addition to student loans and all of her family's other expenses,” added Ms Schloss, who set up a GoFundMe page for the family.

Following the appeal, more than $3,700 (£2,661) was raised for Noah’s mother on GoFundMe — and the figure is rising.

“Thank you SO much for your mind-blowing generosity and support,” wrote Ms Bryant of the fundraising. “As a child living with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder), all future donations will go towards Noah's education and additional supports. We cannot thank you enough. Truly.”

On Instagram, a number of people responded in bemusement at Ms Schloss’s story, with one writing: “This is the cutest thing ever. I’m sure they’ll be back up to speed soon and in the meantime he’s got a good supply of Popsicles. Those were always my favourite ones from the ice cream truck.”

Another added: “He is quite possibly the cutest thing on the planet.” Many called on Amazon to refund Ms Bryant for the popsicle haul.

The Independent has reached out to Amazon for comment.

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