A 19-year-old American scholar, Aryan Anand, has reached a plea bargain with American regulators after being charged with falsifying data to gain entrance to Lehigh University, a private research organization in Pennsylvania. Anand, who had manipulated papers to secure his spot for the 2023-2024 educational time, will then return to India under the terms of the agreement.
According to a report from Lehigh University’s student paper, The Brown and White, Anand’s false actions came to light following a police investigation. Anand was discovered to have fabricated his father’s death and submitted false economic assistance applications. The research was triggered by a Reddit post where Anand detailed his fraud under the account ‘ u/transportationOK4728’.
Anand was detained on June 12 and charged with fraud, with a USD 25 000 loan, before being arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Jordan Knisley. He pleaded guilty to one count of fabrication, which resulted in a one- to three-month word in Northampton County Prison. Anand was required to return to India as part of the plea bargain, but Lehigh University chose not to request compensation of roughly USD 85, 000.
Anand used tools like Adobe Photoshop and iLovePDF to alter some papers, according to the criminal complaint filed by Northampton County’s District Attorney Stephen Baratta. These forged papers included a dying license for his father, tax records, and educational records.
After a Reddit check alerted them to the article on April 26, Lehigh University was informed of Anand’s fraudulent behavior. The blog, which has since been deleted, outlined Anand’s deceptive practices in depth. Anand was identified as the post’s writer thanks to the Lehigh Police research.
Anand’s case brings the investigation into a controversial case of academic dishonesty to a close. His return to India highlights the dangers of concealing academic and financial records.
