Fayetteville woman sentenced 5 years for federal student aid fraud

NORTH CAROLINA (WWAY) — A Fayetteville woman has been sentenced to five years in prison for stealing millions of dollars from the federal student aid program involving Cape Fear Community College.

Cynthia Melvin, 60, collected personal identifying information of 80 so-called straw students between 2016 and 2023 and used that info to submit fraudulent applications for admission and federal student aid at multiple community colleges in north Carolina, including Cape Fear Community College.

Investigators believe the scheme resulted in more than 4.7 million dollars in financial aid awards, but only about 3.5 million was given out.