A Detroit woman has pleaded guilty to her role in a decade-long scheme to obtain federal student aid, officials said.
Michelle Denise Hill, 48, entered the plea Monday to a charge of wire fraud in federal court in Detroit, said Jerome Gorgon, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan.
She is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 3 and faces up to 20 years in prison, Gorgon said in a statement. Hill has also agreed to pay $2,530,854 in restitution, he said.
“Federal student aid exists to open doors for Americans who are working to better themselves and their families,” Gorgon said. “Michelle Hill slammed those doors shut, turning a lifeline into a racket and stealing millions from a program that belongs to our hardworking neighbors.”
Hill’s attorney, Steven Scharg, was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.
Authorities alleged Hill fraudulently obtained more than $2.5 million in federal student aid funds from July 2015 through July 2025.
Investigators with the U.S. Department of Education said she submitted fraudulent aid applications to obtain Pell Grants and Federal Direct Student Loans for more than 80 individuals seeking to attend Wayne County Community College District in Detroit.
They said she obtained the necessary high school diplomas on their behalf, many from the same online school in Florida, and completed their online coursework for them, often simultaneously, to create the appearance of academic progress and extend their eligibility for aid across multiple semesters.
Officials said Hill split the fraudulently obtained aid with the purported students.
Her plea came weeks after two people accused of stealing $2.6 million in COVID-19 relief loans were charged in federal court.
Also this month, federal court documents showed a suspended Detroit district court judge accused of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and other crimes could be facing additional charges.
Last month, a West Bloomfield Township man was sentenced to 41 months in prison after being convicted in federal court of wire fraud in connection with an unemployment insurance scheme.
cramirez@detroitnews.com
@CharlesERamirez
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit woman pleads guilty to wire fraud in student aid scheme
Reporting by Charles E. Ramirez, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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