Dickson Alorwornu, a resident of Greenwich and Ghanaian citizen, will start a four-year prison sentence next month after defrauding the University of Connecticut out of $46,000, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala gave Alorwornu’s sentence on March 5, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office press release. Alorwornu begins his 48-month prison sentence on April 20 and will be on supervisedrelease for two years after.
The wire fraud charges were in connection with a tuition refund scheme Alorwornu was using to scam UConn and other universities out of money, according to the press release.
An investigation conducted by the FBI and the UConn Police Department provided the evidence used to convict Alorwornu with two counts of wire fraud on Oct. 29, 2024, according to a previous press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
When connecting Alorwornu to the fraud at UConn, investigators also found that his email addresses were used to defraud other universities of more than $500,000, according to the press release. Central Connecticut State University, Missouri State University and the University of Nebraska-Omaha were the other targets of his fraud, according to Connecticut Insider.
UConn became a target in Alorwornu’s tuition refund scheme through non-degree study applications he submitted in December 2017, according to the press release. Alorwornu filed two applications with stolen identities and then funded them with over $62,000 through American Express cards from three fraud victims.
Non-degree study allows people who haven’t been formally accepted into a degree-seeking program at UConn to enroll in classes on a space-available basis, according to UConn’s website.
Alorwornu then withdrew from the courses he enrolled in with the stolen identities and asked UConn to refund the money he deposited, which led UConn to transfer $46,000 in bank accounts he controlled, according to the press release.
Connecticut Insider reported that UConn reimbursed one of the fake accounts with $33,000 and the other with $29,000.
Investigators were able to connect the crime to Alorwornu by comparing his 2018 citizenship application to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security with his email address, payment information and IP address, according to federal court documents.
Investigators specifically linked Google Pay records for the two email addresses Alorwornu used to imposter non-degree seeking students and linked both of them to his name and phone number, according to federal court documents.
The press release said Alorwornu had a criminal history of credit card fraud and identity theft with a conviction in New York dating back to 2017.
University Spokesperson Stephanie Reitz said the fraud inspired UConn to create additional verification measures for non-degree students, which she said is a separate process from undergraduate program applications.
“In addition to the requirements that were previously in place for non-degree participation, UConn added new verification measures, including the requirement to upload a valid, unexpired, government-issued photo identification document,” Reitz said.
Other requirements for non-degree students listed on UConn’s website include a high school diploma and compliance with UConn’s COVID-19 and student code policies.
Alorwornu posted a $50,000 bail and will remain released until he reports to prison on April 20, according to the press release.