(Tribune News Service) — A Los Angeles man has been arrested for counterfeiting tuition waivers for families of veterans, duping University of California and California State University schools out of half a million dollars in the process, state Atty. Don Azul was taken into custody Wednesday for allegedly posing as a contractor for CalVet's College Fee Waiver for Veteran Dependents program, which offers free college tuition to attend UC or CSU schools to family members of veterans who have "service-related" disabilities. His scheme fooled the colleges as well and resulted in the state losing more than $500,000 in fraudulently obtained tuition waivers for the families at 23 schools, Bonta said. "It is nothing short of despicable to prey on veterans' family members and take advantage of their college dreams," Bonta said. "We won't stand by when scam artists exploit important programs like the CalVet College Fee Waiver for their own selfish benefit."

Source: Los Angeles Times August 11, 2022 21:50 UTC