DOVER, Del. (AP) — A former associate registrar at Delaware State University has pleaded guilty to accepting bribes to change the registration status of hundreds of out-of-state students so they could pay cheaper in-state tuition at the historically black university.
Crystal Martin pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of federal program bribery, a charge related to the school's receipt of federal funds. She faces up to 10 years in prison, with sentencing set for July 1.
Prosecutors say that between 2013 and 2017, Martin accepted bribes from a DSU graduate who lives in New Jersey in exchange for agreeing to change the registration status of hundreds of out-of-state students, using forged residency documents prepared by the unidentified coconspirator.
The students paid either Martin or her conspirator, with Martin collecting more than $70,000 in bribes.
Authorities said the estimated cost to the university of the reduced tuition payments exceeded $3 million.
School spokesman Carlos Holmes said Martin stopped working for the university in March 2017. Holmes refused to say whether any students involved in the scheme were expelled or subject to disciplinary measures.
