Atwater woman sentenced in federal mail fraud scheme
A 33-year-old Atwater woman received more than four years in prison Monday for her role in a mail fraud scheme, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced.
U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill sentenced Sherise Lanelle Woolridge to four and a half years in prison and ordered her to pay $347,732 in restitution, U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner said in a news release.
Woolridge participated in a scheme to defraud the United States Department of Education of student aid grants and loans. She submitted false financial aid applications to Axia College at the University of Phoenix and Capella University on behalf of students who did not intend to attend either school, according to court documents.
She also used stolen information to apply for college financial aid using another person’s identity. As a result of the scheme to defraud, more than $370,000 in grants and loans were disbursed, prosecutors said.
Natalie Forbort, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General’s Western Regional Office, said she was proud of the work of investigators for “holding Ms. Woolridge accountable for her criminal actions.”
“Federal student aid exists so that individuals can pursue and make their dream of a higher education a reality. It is not, as Ms. Woolridge just found out, a personal slush fund,” Forbort said in the statement. “Her sentence should serve as a warning to anyone who intentionally steals or misappropriates Federal student aid dollars: You will be caught and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
This case is the result of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General’s criminal investigations aimed at shutting down fraudulent schemes that exploit federal student aid programs. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service assisted in the investigation. U.S. Attorney Mark J. McKeon is prosecuting the case.
This story was originally published August 3, 2015 at 5:38 PM with the headline "Atwater woman sentenced in federal mail fraud scheme."