The owner of a California CDL school has pled guilty to charges stemming from a multi-million-dollar fraud scheme. His Los Angeles-area trucking school defrauded the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs out of $4.2 million.
Emmit Marshall is the 52-year-old owner and president of Alliance School of Trucking (AST). Located in Woodland Hills, a city in the Los Angeles metro area, AST had been taking advantage of the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
According to a Department of Justice press release, Marshall and his co-defendant, Robert Waggoner, recruited veterans to “attend” their school. Dozens of veterans were signed up for CDL school at AST without ever showing up. Instead, AST received the tuition for those students directly from the VA, and the veterans pocketed the housing allowance and money for books and supplies.
Marshall and Waggoner fabricated enrollment certifications and even kept student files to support their fraud. When they found out that they were under investigation, the men tried destroying the files.
From the time the fraud started in 2011 until 2015, AST had been paid approximately $2.3 million by the VA. Additionally, the VA paid around $1.9 million in benefits directly to the veterans who were part of the scheme.
Marshall has pled guilty to five counts of felony wire fraud. Waggoner is scheduled to go on trial on February 25th, 2020.
Source: DOJ, freightwaves, ttnews, truckersreport
I’m a driving school owner myself that accepts VA Funding.
At one audit, I had the gentleman give me a hard time because I didn’t have a copy of the check that I had issued to a student who had withdrawn. I could show him the refund in QuickBooks, I could get an image of the check from the bank website, but I didn’t have a copy actually IN HIS FILE.
Really makes me wonder how they can worry about not having a copy of a refund check in a file… yet someone can get away with $4.2 million in fake students… And this isn’t the first time I have seen something almost identical. Priorities much?
This is a shame that we have people like this living in the United States. Here’s another question how do u get the veteran G.I bills and they never even showed up how did they get the G.I bills?
It never ends the Hardening of peoples hearts to not think how their actions affect others.
So true, it’s the lack of Godly morals that is destroying the USA
Pure greed! But without good oversight and getting people out of the office to check up on these type of trade schools this will continue to happen. Why didn’t the school raise it to Tuition cost if they needed the extra money to keep the school running? Make the education harder and longer to really teach how to drive, do small repairs, use a CB radio for emergencies on the roadway, how to handle freight and then the different types of trucking within the industry? Refer and Dry van, tank and flatbed, LTL or Full truck load, how to a bill of lading and what to look for on it to keep you the driver from being screwed at the delivery. It’s a lot more then just driving right? He could have made a Class Act Driving school that takes 4 to 6 months to finish and then he would have turned out great Drivers! The GI Bill pays for the school, books and supplies, which they could have made extra profit there by selling gloves and safety vests, flash lights and so on. Plus the student gets money to live in while at school.
No who’s going to prosecute the IRS, Department of Motor Vehicles, Child support (private corporation), etc who unconstitutionally defrauda people out of their money????
I shouldn’t hold my breath. I guess fraud only applies to the little man.
Amazed AND happy that such a chiseling small amount $4.2 million was even noticed by the Defense Department. Must be a new auditor who didn’t get the memo to ignore fraud and financial abuse.
Throw them all, government employees too in the middle of the dessert or doing this. Bet you they all keep a nice lifestyle while many of us actually do work for a living. It’s not just the owner who allowed and profited from this.
5 counts of non-violent federal offenses. Maybe 3-5 years in minimum-security federal prison – that’s code for picking up cigarette butts on a golf course on some military base – sentences to be served concurrently, and they’re done. How much of that money do you suppose that they will ever pay back? How much other thievery did they get away with? I’ll take half a million per year, for picking up cigarettes with former (and probably future) congressmen… :-/
People use Veterans for their own financial gain everyday. Unless its a store, resturaunt or entertainment company giving discounts to Veterans with a valid military id or VA card and you hear the term Veteran orientated or we support Veterans and troops Run. Most are trying to promote themselves, not the Veteran.