Akakan Umoh
A remorseful US-based Nigerian professor, Nkechy Ezeh, has pleaded guilty for masterminding a sophisticated wire fraud and tax evasion scheme that defrauded Michigan taxpayers of over $1 million (£780,000).
Ezeh, a former executive director at Early Learning Neighbourhood Collaborative (ELNC) at Aquinas College, admitted to conspiring with others to defraud a US government-funded organization for early learning initiatives for impoverished children.
According to the plea agreement, Ezeh said “from at least 2017 through 2023, she conspired with Sharon Killebrew and others and devised a scheme to defraud and obtain $1,400,000” from ELNC, a Michigan-based non-profit that received funding from the US department of health and human services and private donors.
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Court records show that Sharon Killebrew, ELNC’s director of finance and administration, played a central role in the scheme by generating and approving fraudulent invoices at Ezeh’s direction.
“As part of the conspiracy, Defendant directed Sharon Killebrew… to generate approximately $470,100.00 in fictitious invoices for goods and services never received by ELNC and submit them for approval,” the court documents said.
The plea agreement further states that Killebrew kept a portion of the divertedfunds, while “the remainder was transferred to Defendant, PONA Consulting (Defendant’s limited liability company), and other individuals at Defendant’s direction.”
The US Court in Michigan heard how Ezeh, acting as CEO of the ELNC, used her position to funnel taxpayer money to herself, friends, and family members working alongside the non-profit’s bookkeeper, Sharon Killebrew.
Ezeh created nearly $500,000 in fraudulent invoices and established two fictitious daycare businesses to mask the movement of stolen funds.
The embezzled money reportedly financed a lavish lifestyle, including international travel to Hawaii, Liberia, and Nigeria.
While Killebrew was previously sentenced to 54 months in prison, Ezeh now faces up to 20 years for wire fraud and an additional five years for tax evasion.
Prosecutors said Ezeh also concealed conflicts of interest by failing to disclose her involvement in Early Years Coalition (EYC), another Michigan nonprofit linked to the scheme.
The court documents state that although EYC received more than $227,000 in grant payments, it “did not operate preschools in the six months it was operational,” and instead, Ezeh “caused EYC to pay $212,658.84 to herself, PONA Consulting, and other individuals and entities at her direction for work they did not perform”.
The Nigerian-born further admitted to establishing Global Open Learning and Development Preschools (GOLD), another entity used in the scheme. According to prosecutors, GOLD was incorporated using stolen identities and was never registered as a tax-exempt organisation.
“GOLD was never registered as a nonprofit organisation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code,” the court records said, adding that Ezeh caused GOLD to receive fraudulent payments for services never rendered.
In addition to the fraud scheme, Ezeh admitted that she deliberately failed to pay federal income taxes on proceeds derived from the conspiracy.
“Defendant knew that she had tax due and owing each year for tax years 2017–2022 and also knew that she was legally obligated to file truthful income tax returns,” the court documents said.
Prosecutors added that she “willfully attempted to evade and defeat income tax due and owing” by misappropriating funds and concealing income through multiple entities and associates.
The unpaid tax liability for the period was put at $390,174.
Prior to the discovery of the fraud, Ezeh was a celebrated figure in Michigan’s educational and political circles. She had received numerous accolades, including “Woman of the Year” awards, and was appointed to a state executive committee by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in 2020.
Responding to the guilty plea, Mary Chartier, Ezeh’s defence solicitor, stated: “Ezeh is committed to taking full responsibility and accountability for her actions. She is deeply remorseful to anyone who has been negatively impacted.”
Ezeh has agreed to pay $1.4 million in restitution to government agencies and nearly $400,000 in unpaid taxes.
Clay Stiffler, assistant U.S. attorney, highlighted the profile of those harmed by the scheme:
“The victims were mostly children of colour under the age of five years old, 72 percent of whom lived below the federal poverty level in some of the poorest neighbourhoods in Kent County, Kalamazoo, and Battle Creek.”
Amy DeLeeuw, President of the ELNC, expressed her outrage following the court proceedings: “Her theft of millions of dollars intended for the most vulnerable of children was brazen, all-encompassing, and unconscionable. To date, Nkechy has made no effort to repay any of the millions of dollars she allegedly stole.”
A formal sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 13.
