Yes, if the so-called charity made false statements and based on those statements you decided to make a donation, you can definitely sue them to recoup the money you donated. However, in order to sue the charity, you must locate and serve them with your complaint. If you are unable to find them, you may be able to hire a private investigator to locate the charity. You can only receive a judgment against the so-called charity if you serve them with a copy of your complaint. Some courts allow substitute service and service by publication if the Defendants are evading service. However, you cannot collect on a judgment if you don’t know where the Defendant and the Defendant’s assets are located. If you know the name of the person to whom you gave the money, but the name of the “charity” is factitious, you can sue the actual person to whom you gave the money by naming that person and the name under which he or she was doing business, i.e. the name of the “charity.”