William Lee Trey Holladay, III formally separated from Athens City Schools in October 2020. Co-defendant William Richard Carter, Jr., who headed up the Athens online school, is set for trial on February 7, 2022. Crusader. Upon reviewing the allegations against Dr. Rick Carter, Athens City Schools has placed him on administrative leave until further notice. Details on the plea agreement were released by the U.S. Attorneys Office in Montgomery on Thursday. Additionally, Trey Holladay, Carter, and Corkren are charged with aggravated identity theft. If convicted of the conspiracy charge, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment, as well as substantial monetary penalties and restitution. LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. - Former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay officially pleaded guilty in a multi-million dollar virtual academy fraud scheme on Thursday. Montgomery, Alabama On Tuesday, February 23, 2021, six individuals appeared in court after being indicted on charges related to the fraudulent enrollment of students in Alabama virtual schools, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., FBI Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp, Jr., and Acting Special Agent in Charge Kori Smith of the U.S. Department of Educations Office of Inspector General. However, the government agreed to drop more than 80 additional counts against Holladay most of which were various counts of wire fraud related to the conspiracy and dropped all charges against Holladays wife, who participated in the scheme. The defendants named in the indictment are Dr. William L. ("Trey") Holladay, III, 56, a resident of Athens, Alabama and the former superintendent of the Athens City Schools district; Deborah Irby Holladay, 57, of Athens and formerly employed by the Athens City Schools district; William Richard ("Rick") Carter, Jr., 45, also of Athens, currently When I was hired as your State Superintendent, I committed to improving education in our state which includes working closely with our local, state, and federal partners to ensure fiscal responsibility and accountability, so every crucial dollar is spent on educating our students, said Alabama State Superintendent Dr. Eric Mackey. I hope that this indictment serves as a warning for others who might try to line their pockets with public funds., Public corruption remains the FBIs top criminal priority because public officials must be trusted to do their jobs with honesty and integrity, stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Johnnie Sharp, Jr. The citizens of Alabama should rest assured that the FBI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate corruption at every level and hold accountable those officials who violate the publics trust and use their position for profit or gain., These so-called educators have been charged for preying on the schools that placed them in positions of trust to educate students and the students they promised to serve. None of the other individuals charged in the indictment remain affiliated with Athens City Schools in any manner. The defendants named in the indictment are: (1) Dr. William L. ("Trey") Holladay, III, 56, a resident of Athens, Alabama and the former superintendent of the Athens City Schools district; (2) Deborah Irby Holladay, 57, of Athens and formerly employed by the Athens City Schools district; (3) William Richard ("Rick") Carter, Jr., 45, also of Sentencing is expected next year. Each will have three years of supervised release after serving prison time. Josh Moon is an investigative reporter and featured columnist at the Alabama Political Reporter with years of political reporting experience in Alabama. As a result of the fraudulent reporting the school systems received payments from Alabamas Education Trust Fund as if the students actually attended public schools. City of Pasadena Celebrates AAPI Heritage Month. 20Former Limestone County Superintendent Tom Sisk was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty on April 8, 2021 to conspiring to defraud the United States government. Holladays next court date was scheduled for February 2022. Marshals, Secret Service assist in Hartselle, Bill passes to ban smoking in car with minor, Tuesday Morning set to close all its stores, 6 in, Domestic abuse victim shares story of attempted murder, BestReviews.com - Top gifts to make everyone happy this spring, Surprise your mom with one of these Mothers Day, Mothers Day inspo: This foot massager has 20,000, Drew Barrymores Walmart collection is perfect for, Best Mothers Day gifts for the budding plant mom, Best Mothers Day Gifts for moms obsessed with books, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Athens school administrator William Richard Rick Carter Jr. was found guilty of conspiracy, four counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft in March. Assistant Superintendent at Iredell-Statesville Schools Statesville, NC. According to a release from the U.S. Attorneys Office on December 16, Holladay admitted that he and co-defendant Thomas Michael Sisk conspired to inflate the number of students enrolled at Athens City Schools and Limestone County Schools. Trey Holladay. We will continue to cooperate with Acting U.S. Attorney Sandra J. Stewart and her team until the matter is completely adjudicated and settled.. Gregory Corkren was a resident of Tuscaloosa County, Alabama and was a retired public educator. The three pleaded guilty last year for their roles in the scheme. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Tutt is listed as a longtime friend of Trey Holladay in the indictment. Help us combat the proliferation of sexual exploitation crimes against children. To learn more about The Alabama Education Lab and receive notifications about stories and events, sign up for its newsletter, Ed Chat. of Justice explained in a statement: The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to fraudulently enroll students in public virtual schools and then falsely report those students to the Alabama State Department of Education. Court records show on Tuesday Holladay changed his plea of not guilty to guilty for one count of conspiracy. Dr. Beth Taylor. All rights reserved (About Us). In doing so, they stole children and parents identities and bribed administrators of private schools. According to the indictment, the defendants obtained student identities to use in their scheme from various private schools located across the stateparticularly private schools in the Black Belt region of Alabama. Terms of Use In 1995 the school district bought the former Indian Hill Mall, a failing shopping center built in the 1960s, and . Published on May 25, 2021 at 2:25 pm CDT. Hubbard, originally sentenced to four years for violating ethics laws, has been in the custody of the ADOC since September 2020. The Board has not been informed of a date certain for the conclusion of the investigation. Reporter Josh Moon contributed to this report. Six of the defendants in the lawsuit former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay, his wife Deborah Holladay, ACS Director of Planning Rick Carter, former Limestone County Schools . Now a resident of Montgomery, Holladay pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the Alabama State Department of Education. Its just wrong, Opinion | Sen. Jay Hovey may have meant well, but he was wrong. Copyright 2021 WAFF. Funds allocated for education should be spent to educate our public school students. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Board of Education will have a Special Called Meeting on Thursday, February 25, 2021, at 7:30 a.m. in the central office board room. According to the plea agreement, additional charges of wire fraud and identity theft against Holladay were dropped. The two superintendents then received state money for the inflated enrollment numbers, which they then kept for personal use, through a complicated system of false report cards, false addresses and false completion reports, prosecutors said. He is also listed as a friend of Trey Holladay in the indictment. Carter's co-conspirators include former superintendent of the Athens City Schools district Dr. William L. ("Trey") Holladay, III; David Webb Tutt, of Uniontown, Alabama; Gregory ("Greg") Earl Corkren, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama; and former superintendent of the Limestone County School district Thomas Michael Sisk. 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DIVISION II STATE CHAMPIONS. If youre thinking of altering your workout routine, youre probably looking for new exercises and equipment to help you reach your fitness goals. Wednesday, March 15, 2023 Print Edition St. Patrick's Day in Athens A Tuscaloosa County man mentioned more than 150 times in a federal indictment involving four local former educators received more. 'Trey' Holladay, Ed.D. The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to fraudulently enroll students in public virtual schools and then falsely report those students to the Alabama State Department of Education. The six-day protest was their first in decades and led to a 6% raise for teachers, added nurses and school . Scroll to continue reading. Advertisement. The indictment states the purpose of the conspiracy was to obtain greater state funding allocations through the Foundation Program than they would otherwise have been entitled to Athens City Schools would then use, directly and indirectly, portions of the excess money to fund the completion of capital projects, including, the new campus of Athens High School. RELATED: Limestone County Schools Superintendent Tom Sisk heading to Bristol, TN Board of Education. Holladay was on leave from June 2020 until his last day with the district on Oct. 31, 2020. In total, the Alabama Department of Education believes the six people robbed public schools of more than $5 million using a variety of methods to falsify virtual schools rolls and illegally gain more per-pupil funding. . The Athens City Schools Board of Education held a special meeting Thursday at 7:30 a.m. He faces a maximum prison sentence of five years along with substantial monetary penalties. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Board of Education members are elected to a four-year term. The school systems agreed to pay the consulting companies a percentage of the per-pupil funds. ACS would then use, directly and indirectly, portions of the excess money to fund the completion of capital projects, including, the new campus of Athens High School. According to a plea agreement finalized Thursday, Trey Holladay admitted that he, along with Thomas Michael Sisk, former superintendent of the Limestone County Schools system, conspired to tell the state false numbers of students in their school systems so that they could pocket additional state money. April 20, 2023. Any defendant convicted of wire or mail fraud faces a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment, as well as substantial monetary penalties and restitution. However, over the course of several years, the individuals named in the indictment betrayed the trust of not only our citizens but our students, parents, and other teachers and administrators who continue to work diligently every day. Former Athens superintendent Trey Hollaway, who pleaded guilty to his role in concocting a scheme to defraud public schools across the state, will spend the next 60 months in federal prison. Holladay left the school district months after the FBI started investigating him in 2020. None of the other individuals charged in the indictment remain affiliated with Athens City Schools in any manner. Thomas Sisk was the superintendent of the Limestone County, Alabama School District during the times investigated. The defendants skimmed the state money through direct cash payments and payments to third-party contractors owned by the various co-conspirators. The elections are held on a first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of even-numbered years effective with the 2018 election. Holladay now faces a maximum five-year prison sentence and has agreed to potential monetary penalties imposed by a judge, according to court records. Former Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay, one of six defendants indicted on federal charges of conspiracy in the scheme, is charged with conspiracy and 88 counts of wire fraud. 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All rights reserved. While the school system was mentioned in the indictment brought in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, the indictment does not name the Limestone County Board of Education or anyone currently involved with Limestone County Schools as defendants. Former Athens City Schools superintendent William L. "Trey" Holladay III on Thursday received the maximum sentence of five years in federal prison and ordered to pay $2.9 million in. . Former Limestone County Superintendent Tom Sisk was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison on Tuesday, fined $15,000 and ordered to pay $13,000 in restitution. 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Superintendent pleads guilty in fraud case.
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