A judge has appointed a bankruptcy trustee to take control of PipeVine, the donation-processing agency that admits it skimmed millions of dollars from gifts to cover operating costs.

The state attorney general´s office yesterday asked San Francisco Superior Court Judge Ronald Quidachay to dissolve the non-profit and appoint a certified bankruptcy trustee or set a hearing. A spokesman for the attorney general says the judge´s action means the process has begun for getting the charities the money they´re owed.

PipeVine handled charitable donations for 600 companies, mostly in the San Francisco Bay Area. Among them were Wells Fargo and ChevronTexaco. The company processed donations to thousands of charities.