Former President of Morris Brown College Admits to Fraud in Student Loan Embezzlement Case

With the embezzlement trial of former Morris Brown College president Delores Cross set to begin in Atlanta, the man who had served as director of financial aid at Morris Brown College, Parvesh Singh, pleaded guilty to one count of theft of federal funds. Singh admitted to fraudulently securing $92,000 in government loans for students who were not enrolled in the college. As part of his plea bargain, Singh agreed to testify against Delores Cross.

Then, Cross, knowing that Singh’s testimony would be damaging to her defense, also pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement. As part of the deal she made with prosecutors, Cross, now 69 years old, will be required to pay $11,000 in restitution. She could face up to 16 months in jail. Had she been convicted at trial, Cross faced a jail term of five years and a fine of $250,000. In addition, she faced 24 other counts, all of which were dropped in the plea deal.

Copyright © 2006. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.