Aid Forms Faked to Buy Cocaine
A fired University of Miami official says he faked hundreds of financial-aid forms to help needy students for more than a decade, but only began charging kickbacks in the past two years to feed a cocaine habit.
Former associate academic coordinator Tony Russell said he charged $85 to Miami students, mostly football players.
“The FBI’s got my statement,” Russell, 43, said. “They know I’m guilty. I deserve it for what I did for the last two years. There’s no question in my mind.”
He said he falsified as many as 60 applications a year for at least 12 years, the last two at Miami.
The NCAA has said it will wait until the government’s probe is over to investigate.
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