Owner of Chatsworth trucking school pleads guilty in $4 million GI Bill scheme

Owner of Chatsworth trucking school pleads guilty in $4 million GI Bill scheme

by Eric Licas

The owner of a Chatsworth truck driver school suspected of fraudulently claiming at least $4 million from the government by recruiting veterans to enroll in classes they never planned to attend pleaded guilty to federal charges Monday, July 29.

Emmit Marshall, 52, of Woodland Hills, admitted to five felony counts of wire fraud, officials from the U.S. Attorney’s office said in a news release. The owner and president of Alliance School of Trucking could face a maximum sentence of 100 years in federal prison.

The defendant admitted to running a scheme with one of his school’s directors, co-defendant Robert Waggoner, 56, of Canyon Country, which took advantage of the GI Bill to falsely make claims for tuition and other expenses, officials said in the release. They allegedly sought eligible veterans and told them they could collect housing fees and other benefits without actually attending programs at the defendant’s school.

The GI Bill is a program that offers financial assistance to former soldiers trying to rejoin civilian life. The Department of Veterans Affairs paid roughly $2.3. million to Alliance School of Trucking, and about $1.9 million to veterans who appeared to be taking classes there between 2011 and 2015.

The defendants also fraudulently certified veterans’ enrollment, and falsified student records with phony documents, prosecutors said. Marshall ordered the destruction of those files when he and Waggoner learned that they were under investigation, Marshall’s plea agreement says.

Marshall was scheduled to appear for sentencing on Nov. 18. Waggoner’s trial is set to begin on Feb. 25, 2020.

All credit goes to Eric Licas
Originally published on https://www.dailynews.com