PITTSBURGH -- Full refunds will be issued to everyone who filed a claim about the Black and Gold Bash, a big fundraising event that caused controversy when it was abruptly canceled two years ago.

Under terms of the settlement, Call 4 Action reporter Aaron Saykin said the charity has been disbanded and its president, Robert McConnell, can no longer solicit funds in Pennsylvania.

"First off, thank you for your patience. That's number one," Attorney General Tom Corbett said Friday. "Number two, it was a complicated financial deal. It took a lot of work in this office, and we have reached an agreement where everybody will get their money back, plus a little bit of interest."

The deadline to file a claim was November 2007. Those who filed on time should receive their refunds in about a month.

Originally scheduled to be held downtown at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in October 2006, the event was moved to The Mountaineer Race Track and Gaming Resort in Chester, W.Va.

Event planners made the move two months prior, but Call 4 Action received phone calls from ticket holders who said they were never notified of the location switch and found out only by word of mouth.

The Mountaineer later announced that it was canceling the event after learning that the organizer, Hope Cancer Treatment Foundation, is not registered as a charitable organization with the state of West Virginia.

Still, hundreds of ticket holders showed up for the bash, only to learn that it was canceled and they might not get their money back.

Pennsylvania's attorney general filed a lawsuit against the group organizing the event because, according to one deputy attorney general, the foundation had been soliciting charitable donations without first registering to do so.

The Black and Gold Bash is not affiliated with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but the event's Web site -- which is no longer in operation -- featured photos of Steelers players and plenty of prizes associated with the team.

Tickets were sold across the region for $75, and according to the site, they expected to sell 7,000 to 10,000 tickets. The site said prizes would given out every five minutes, including:

$75,000 and $25,000
A Chevrolet Tahoe
A Cadillac Escalade
Steelers road trips

The event was supposed to be a benefit for the Hope Cancer Treatment Foundation, which was just created that summer.

At the time of the event in 2006, McConnell told Call 4 Action that he moved the event to the Mountaineer because the convention center didn't have the proper liquor license.

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