Department of Education Special Agents

The U.S. Department of Education Office of the Inspector General is responsible for detecting fraud, waste, and abuse within the department. Special Agents of the Department of Education conduct audits and investigations into allegations of misuse of department money and resources.

Special agents of the Department of Education are fully certified federal law enforcement officers authorized to make arrests, execute searches, carry weapons, and detain suspects. Department of Education Special Agents derive this authority from the Inspector General Act of 1978.

The U.S. Department of Education overseas the funding of millions, if not billions, of dollars worth of federal student aid and grants. With so much money to keep track of, it is no surprise that a majority of the criminal investigations conducted by the Department of Education Office of the Inspector General relate directly to fraud. In order to combat this fraud and theft of government funds, Special Agents of the Department of Education independent and objective audit, investigations, and inspections which may include activities such as surveillance, undercover work, interviews, and searches.

Incidents of criminal wrongdoing which have been investigated by Department of Education Special Agents include:

The president of a beauty school in Pennsylvania being ordered to pay $83,000 in restitution to the federal government after an investigation revealed that between 1999 and 2001 the school defrauded the government in a financial aid scheme.

The former president of International Education Center who failed to make refunds to the federal government Pell Grant program totaling more than $600,000 when students failed to attend the school after enrolling or later withdrew from courses.

The former president and former financial aid director of a business training institute in Wisconsin who failed to refund approximately $558,348 in Title IV financial aid funds, then dispersed approximately $216,298 in Federal Family Education Loan Program funds. Investigation revealed that the school further submitted fraudulent claims for reimbursement in the amount of $571,813 in an attempt to cover up the illegal disbursements.

Owners of a technical training institute who were ordered to pay over $557,000 in restitution to the federal government after an investigation revealed an attempt by the school to obtain financial aid assistance by falsifying eligibility, attendance, and grade records.

A beauty school in Louisiana was ordered to pay over $164,000 in restitution to the federal government when investigation revealed a conspiracy to defraud the federal government out of financial aid Title IV funds by falsifying student and school records.

There is a lot of money to be had for honest and hard working students who want to further their education, but there are a lot of crooks out there too. In order to make sure that the tax payers only pay for the education of students who truly deserve and require financial aid assistance, the Special Agents of the Department of Education work around the clock to keep the system's integrity in tact.

Sources:

OIG. U.S. Department of Education.

Anderson, Steven D. Accountability for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Funds. U.S. Department of Education Office of the Inspector General.