MIAMI, Fla. — Three people have been sentenced for their roles in a high-profile fraudulent nursing diploma scheme that led to over 7,600 fake nursing diplomas being obtained from a pair of private Palm Beach County nursing schools.
On April 2, the three defendants were sentenced to federal prison after having previously been found guilty of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges following a three-week jury trial in Fort Lauderdale in relation to a fraudulent nursing diploma scheme.
Gail Russ, registrar of the Palm Beach School of Nursing in Lake Worth, Florida, received a 78-month prison term, three years of supervised release, and an $861,672 forfeiture order from U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal.
Judge Singhal sentenced Cassandre Jean, owner and operator of Success Nursing Review in Brooklyn, New York, to 36 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, a $20,000 fine, and ordered forfeiture of $4,698,828.
The court ordered Ms Russ and Ms Jean to be remanded to the custody of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to begin serving their sentences.
Judge Singhal sentenced Vilaire Duroseau, owner and operator of the Center for Advance Training and Studies in West Orange, New Jersey, to 33 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release and ordered forfeiture of $1,381,913.40.
The court ordered Ms Duroseau to surrender in Newark, New Jersey, on April 5.
These defendants and 11 co-defendants were charged for their involvement in a scheme to sell fraudulent nursing degree diplomas and transcripts. The diplomas and transcripts were obtained from two private nursing schools that the State of Florida once approved to issue diplomas and transcripts to individuals seeking licenses and jobs as registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPN/VNs).
According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida (USAO), the bogus diplomas and transcripts qualified purchasers to sit for the national nursing board exam and, after passing it, to obtain licenses and jobs in various states as RNs and LPN/VNs.
The scheme involved Palm Beach School of Nursing and Quisqueya School of Nursing LLC in Palm Beach County, Florida, distributing more than 7,600 fake nursing diplomas. The USAO said these schools are now closed due to their students’ excessive failure rates on the state nursing board exam.
According to the USAO, those nursing applicants who passed the National Nursing Board exam used fraudulent diplomas to obtain RN or LPN/VN licenses and nursing jobs with unwitting healthcare providers throughout the United States.
In 2023, 27 defendants were charged and convicted for participating in Operation Nightingale, a nursing diploma fraud scheme that created an illegal licensing and employment shortcut for aspiring nurses.
