A Richmond, Texas, man is headed to federal prison after orchestrating a years-long scheme that defrauded the U.S. Department of Education out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in student financial aid - and left real victims buried in fraudulent student loan debt.

Emmanuel Olugbaike Finnih, 43, was sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen to 78 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.


Scheme spanned years, targeted hundreds of victims

For approximately five years, Finnih submitted more than 100 fraudulent financial aid applications to the Department of Education using stolen identities of fake  straw students  at colleges and universities across Texas.

Finnih used victims' personal identifying information to prepare, submit, and sign fraudulent financial aid applications and master promissory notes in their names. He also set up mailing addresses, phone numbers, and email accounts he controlled to intercept communications from the Department of Education and the schools.

He then collected financial aid refunds through electronic transfers, checks, and prepaid debit cards sent to addresses and bank accounts under his control.

Authorities also discovered Finnih possessed false identity documents - including temporary driver permits and identification cards - that he intended to unlawfully use or transfer as part of the scheme.

In a particularly calculated move, Finnih would often masculinize the names of female straw students while continuing to use their correct Social Security numbers and dates of birth. This allowed him to more easily pose as those students and keep the scheme going.

In at least one instance, Finnih called a local community college and attempted to have financial aid payments unfrozen after the school flagged fraudulent transcripts tied to one of the straw students.

Victims left with damaged credit, loan debt

The fraud had real consequences for real people. Some victims were left with tens of thousands of dollars in student loans fraudulently placed in their names, significantly damaging thei

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