Former Wis. inmate guilty in diploma mill scheme

By: Associated Press//June 27, 2012//

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MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A judge has found a former Wisconsin inmate guilty of running a diploma mill from behind bars.

According to the state Justice Department, Winnebago County Circuit Judge Scott Woldt found 46-year-old Kenneth Shong guilty of one felony count of fraud Tuesday following a two-day bench trial. The judge sentenced him to seven years in prison and three years on extended supervision.

Prosecutors accused Shong of coaxing his fellow prison inmates into paying tuition to a distance-learning institution called Carlingford University, telling them the school was chartered to issue degrees from its London campus. Investigators, however, determined the school isn’t chartered in the United Kingdom.

Shong had argued he thought the university was set up properly and didn’t intend to cheat anyone. His attorney, Jeffrey Brandt, declined comment Tuesday.

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