Fraud rises, scams follow
Charlotte Steinway (Tufts Daily/Tufts U.)
Issue date: 12/7/07 Section: News
One of the largest cases of university embezzlement occurred in 2004, when Delores Cross, the former president of Morris Brown College in Atlanta, Ga., was indicted on charges of embezzling $3.4 million. The embezzled funds were obtained from federal loans and grants under the guise of students who did not exist or who had already graduated from the university.
Cross pleaded guilty to all charges in May 2006, and Morris Brown College lost its university accreditation, causing its student enrollment to drop from 2,500 students, to its current total of less than 50.
Outside of higher education, cases of embezzlement and fraud in other industries have gained public attention nationwide.
"I think media attention to fraud in general has increased, with all the 'Enrons' of the world," Bachman said.
Though corruption in certain industries may be given slightly more media coverage, fraud and embezzlement can occur in many occupational fields, according to Jeffrey Denner, founder and partner of Denner-Pellegrino, a criminal defense law firm in Boston.
"You see embezzlement everywhere: in universities, government, and corporations both large and small," Denner said. "Embezzlement cases can occur any time someone is put in a position of responsibility."
"Universities are like any other organization on the planet: [issues of embezzlement and fraud] occur at exactly the same frequency," Bachman agreed. "Any environment with controls and humans with a failure of character will be prone to issues of fraud." Although each industry's predisposition to fraud is virtually equivalent, there are still disparities between the causes and effects of embezzlement and fraud in each industry.
The AFCA published a list in 2006 that ranked education as the seventh most fraud-affected industry. The category "Business/Financial Services" took first place.
Denner said universities could be growing more like corporations in the ways they operate, which might lead to more instances of embezzlement in higher education.
Cross pleaded guilty to all charges in May 2006, and Morris Brown College lost its university accreditation, causing its student enrollment to drop from 2,500 students, to its current total of less than 50.
Outside of higher education, cases of embezzlement and fraud in other industries have gained public attention nationwide.
"I think media attention to fraud in general has increased, with all the 'Enrons' of the world," Bachman said.
Though corruption in certain industries may be given slightly more media coverage, fraud and embezzlement can occur in many occupational fields, according to Jeffrey Denner, founder and partner of Denner-Pellegrino, a criminal defense law firm in Boston.
"You see embezzlement everywhere: in universities, government, and corporations both large and small," Denner said. "Embezzlement cases can occur any time someone is put in a position of responsibility."
"Universities are like any other organization on the planet: [issues of embezzlement and fraud] occur at exactly the same frequency," Bachman agreed. "Any environment with controls and humans with a failure of character will be prone to issues of fraud." Although each industry's predisposition to fraud is virtually equivalent, there are still disparities between the causes and effects of embezzlement and fraud in each industry.
The AFCA published a list in 2006 that ranked education as the seventh most fraud-affected industry. The category "Business/Financial Services" took first place.
Denner said universities could be growing more like corporations in the ways they operate, which might lead to more instances of embezzlement in higher education.
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posted 3/02/09 @ 5:09 PM EST
Unfortunately there's a lot of scams out there. For college students, some other scams to watch out for are "free" ringtones that trick you into signing up for an overpriced subscription service, weight loss products that don't work (wu yi green tea, acai berry, etc. (Continued…)
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