By Tova O'Brien
Greg Mortensen's best-selling memoir Three Cups of Tea sold millions of copies and in return made millions of dollars, money he says helped build schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
But now an inquiry has been launched by the Montana attorney-general – the stories have been called fiction and the money raised, profiteering.
Mortenson is a celebrity philanthropist. He draws inspiration from Sir Edmund Hillary and he gives his - and other people's - money to children.
Or at least that's what he says.
Allegations made on 60 Minutes reveal only 41 percent of the money Mortenson's charity spent in 2009 actually went to schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and roughly half the schools his charity proudly took responsibility for were empty, built by somebody else or not receiving support at all.
Doubts were raised by external auditors about the integrity of Mortenson's charity as early as January. They warned he could be liable for as much as $28 million in back taxes and penalties tied to excess benefits.
He's not just financially accused of cooking the books – the credibility of key passages in his memoir have also been called into question.
"I went into the area to find a place to build a school," he claimed. "What happened was I got kidnapped by the Taleban for eight days."
But his alleged kidnappers have called in the litigators and they're planning to sue.
His charity is widely supported. It's accepted everything from the pocket money of children to a $100,000 donation from Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize payout.
Mortensen vehemently denies the allegations and has questioned the credibility of 60 Minutes' sources
Suffice to say, there's a lot of people who hope he's right.
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