TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - A chain of for-profit schools is facing a lawsuit after it allegedly misguided students on federal financial aid forms, according to an announcement Wednesday by Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Wifredo A. Ferrer.
The suit alleges that Fast Train II Corp. had students fill out fraudulent student aid applications. This alleged action led the school system to get federal funds that amounted to millions of dollars.
Fast Train II Corp. ran operations for seven Florida schools that were located in Duval, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Miami-Dade and Broward counties. The alleged claims happened between Jan. 1, 2009 to June 22, 2012. During this period, it allegedly submitted financial aid claims to the United States Department of Education, in addition to submitting claims for Federal Direct Loans and Federal Pell Grants.
“Taking advantage of students in order to exploit federal financial aid programs is reprehensible, and we will continue to work with our federal partners to protect Florida students and the integrity of federal financial aid,” Bondi said.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations and the United States Department of Education participated in the investigation.