Tag Archives: crime

Convicted felon and former U Louisville ed school dean Robert Felner to be released from federal prison today

Robert Felner, former dean of the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Louisville and convicted felon, is schedule to be release from federal prison today.

Felner was sentenced to 63 months in prison for his role in defrauding the U of L and the University of Rhode Island of $2.3 million of US Department of Education funds earmarked for No Child Left Behind Act research.

The U of L reported suspected fraud to federal officials and, in June 2008, on Felner’s last day of work at U of L, federal officers conducted simultaneous raids on the U of L College of Education and Human Development and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, where Felner had accepted the presidency and was in the process of moving. The investigation involved the US Secret Service, US Postal Inspection Service and the Internal Revenue Service.

In January 2010, Felner pleaded guilty to nine Federal charges, including income tax evasion.

For a refresher course on the felonious Felner see PageOneKentucky.com’ summary of events. For a full course of Felner on PageOneKentucky click here. (Shout out to Jake at PageOneKentucky for excellent investigative reporting on Felner and the U of L.)

For Workplace Blog coverage of Felner click here.

Here is a Louisville Courier-Journal profile of Felner: Robert Felner profile: Arrogant, outrageous, abusive and duplicitous.

A couple of footnotes to the Felner Story:

(1) Los Angeles school superintendent, John Deasy, has had his academic credentials called into question. Deasy was given a PhD by the University of Louisville after he was enrolled for four months and received a total of nine credits. Deasy’s doctoral advisor was Robert Felner. Deasy had previously awarded $375,000 in consulting contracts to Felner, while Deasy was Superintendent of Santa Monica schools.

(2) U of L has been making double retirement payouts to administrators for their silence.

Records show that the school paid a full year’s salary to outgoing vice presidents Michael Curtin ($252,350) and Larry Owsley ($248,255) and to assistant to the president Vivian Hibbs ($66,391) to induce them not to “disparage, demean or impugn the university or its senior leadership.”

And last month U of L made a $346,000.00 settlement with Angela Kosawha:

The University of Louisville is paying another large settlement in connection with the retirement of a high-ranking official — this time, $346,844 to its top lawyer. University counsel Angela Koshewa is on a three-month leave of absence before she officially retires June 1. Documents obtained under the Kentucky Open Records Act show the university is paying Koshewa — who has questioned some expenditures and proposals backed by President James Ramsey and Dr. David Dunn, the executive vice president for Health Affairs — twice her final salary.

Current U of L President James Ramsey and Provost Shirley Willihnganz are the same campus officials who hired Robert Felner, and defended him when he was initially charged with defrauding the university.

RCMP release sketch of suspect in UBC sexual assaults

CBC News, November 5, 2013– RCMP have released a composite sketch of the suspect in a string of sexual assaults at the University of British Columbia this year.

Sgt. Peter Thiessen says the suspect in question is a Caucasian male, with dark or olive skin, in his late 20s to early 30s. He is slim in build and measures between 5 foot 8 and 6 foot 2.

Thiessen is asking anybody who has information about the suspect to contact the RCMP’s tipline at 778-290-5291 or 1-877-543-4822.

Six sexual assaults have taken place on the UBC campus over the past several months. Police say they were likely committed by the same suspect.

The most recent assault, reported Oct. 27, involved a young woman walking home from Gage Hall on Student Union Boulevard shortly before 1:30 a.m. She noticed a shadow behind her and was grabbed from behind. When she flailed her arms, the suspect ran off, police had said.

The other five reported incidents occurred April 19, May 19, Sept. 28, Oct. 13 and Oct. 19.

View sketch: CBC News

University worker accused of extorting student file sharers

RockRap.com: University worker accused of extorting student file sharers

by Greg Sandoval CNet News

If you thought the Recording Industry Association of America was hard on illegal file sharing, consider Dorin Dehelean.
Dehelean, an Internet security analyst, was in charge of tracking illegal file sharing at the University of Georgia until he tried to shake down the student downloaders he caught.

Last week, police arrested the 37-year-old Dehelean on a felony extortion charge, according to a report published by the Web site of the Athens Banner-Herald. Police allege that Dehelean contacted a female student two weeks ago to tell her that he’d caught her violating school policy by illegally downloading copyright materials.

He also told her he could make the “situation go away in exchange for money,” Jimmy Williamson, chief of campus police at the university, told the Banner-Herald. “All he was doing was (offering) to keep the information from going to Judicial Programs.”

The student, who apparently could have faced disciplinary action for the downloading, told Dehelean that she didn’t have the money and then informed a school official about the conversation. The police were contacted and they sent a plainclothes officer to meet with Dehelean posing as the student. After Dehelean accepted a payment of an undisclosed amount, he was arrested and the school immediately fired him.

Police believe Dehelean tried to extort other students and may have been paid off by at least one student. No word yet on whether the female student was disciplined for the downloading.

www.rockrap.com

Binghamton University killing: Al-Zahrani asked about a transfer 30 minutes before stabbing

Press & Sun-Bulletin: Binghamton University killing: 46-year-old grad student charged in professor’s death

Less than 30 minutes before he allegedly stabbed Binghamton University professor Richard Antoun to death on Friday, Abdulsalam Al-Zahrani approached professor Joshua Price to complain of financial troubles and inquire about transferring into the doctoral program that Price directs.

Al-Zahrani, a 46-year-old post-graduate student in the anthropology department, had met with Price once or twice before, Price said, the first time on the afternoon of Nov. 10.

The New York Times: Binghamton Student Says He Warned Officials

VESTAL, N.Y. — In this small upstate college town, there were many who tried to comprehend how a popular 77-year-old professor who championed antiwar philosophies would have come to such a violent end: stabbed to death in his office on Friday, by, the police said, a graduate student whom he knew.

2 former Tufts administrators admit big thefts from university

Boston Globe: 2 former Tufts administrators admit big thefts from university

Two former administrators for Tufts University have pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $1 million from the school and spending it on items such as gourmet steaks, high-end fashion, and foreign travel, Middlesex prosecutors said yesterday.

Georgia: Professor sought in murders remains on loose, and his passport is missing

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Heavily armed police patrol UGA in wake of shooting
Professor sought in murders remains on loose, and his passport is missing

ATHENS — University of Georgia police patrolled the campus Monday with semiautomatic weapons as part of a stepped-up security effort in the wake of Saturday’s triple slaying at an Athens theater, chief Jimmy Williamson said.

Williamson said campus police are using two-officer foot patrols, with one of the two officers carrying an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle.

Banner-Herald: Police searching for UGA professor in shooting that killed three at theater

University of Georgia SWAT team members ride in the back of a pickup as they search for Professor George Zinkhan after he allegedly shot and killed three people at a community theater picnic on

A nationwide search is underway for a University of Georgia professor who police say shot and killed his wife and two men early this afternoon at an Athens theater gathering.

George Zinkhan, 56, is still at large, Athens-Clarke police said.

California: Chico State University President Zingg injured in assault

Enterprise Record: Chico State University President Zingg injured in assault

CHICO — Chico State University President Paul Zingg suffered minor injuries when he was assaulted by a man at about 10:20 a.m. Wednesday in his office in Kendall Hall.

The alleged assailant, identified as Chico resident Abe Baxter Stutts Jr., 42, reportedly entered Zingg’s office suite and asked an employee if he could “speak with the person in charge.”