Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,
The Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has discovered roughly $270 million in suspicious financial activity likely associated with student aid program fraud.
FinCEN issued an alert in July asking financial institutions to report suspicious activities linked to student aid fraud.
A review of submitted reports identified more than 20,000 potentially suspicious transactions since February this year. FinCEN has reported approximately $270 million in suspected fraud to federal investigators for further investigation, the Treasury said in an Oct. 19 statement.
"Federal student aid is intended to expand educational opportunities, not line the pockets of fraudsters who steal from students pursuing their education and hardworking taxpayers," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in the statement.
"Treasury is working with financial institutions and law enforcement to identify these fraud schemes, recover stolen funds, and hold those responsible accountable."
The department said it was working with the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, headed by Vice President JD Vance, and encouraging whistleblowers to report fraud-related information.
In an example of educational fraud, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced last month that a Detroit man was sentenced to 92 months in federal prison for fraud schemes, including one that targeted federal student aid pr
