Nigerian-born professor pleads guilty to $1.4m wire fraud, tax evasion in US

US Court

Nkechy Ezeh, a former executive director at Early Learning Neighbourhood Collaborative (ELNC), has admitted to conspiring with others to defraud a US government-funded organisation.

Ezeh, an associate professor of education, pleaded guilty in a US district court in Michigan to charges of wire fraud, conspiracy and tax evasion.According to the plea agreement, Ezeh admitted that “from at least 2017 through 2023, she conspired with Sharon Killebrew and others to devise a scheme to defraud and obtain $1,400,000” from ELNC, a Michigan-based nonprofit that received funding from the US department of health and human services and private donors.Court records show that Sharon Killebrew, ELNC’s director of finance and administration, played a central role in the scheme by generating and approving fraudulent invoices at Ezeh’s direction.

“As part of the conspiracy, Defendant directed Sharon Killebrew… to generate approximately $470,100.00 in fictitious invoices for goods and services never received by ELNC and submit them for approval,” the court documents said.

The plea agreement further states that Killebrew kept a portion of the diverted funds, while “the remainder was transferred to Defendant, PONA Consulting (Defendant’s limited liability company), and other individuals at Defendant’s direction”. Thecable