Michael Perik, the husband of Rhode Island’s Democratic Party Chair Liz Beretta-Perik, was indicted earlier this month for allegedly stealing $20 million through education grants.
The grants were linked to Ohio’s Eastern Gateway Community College, which officials said closed in part because of the scheme, according to WJAR-TV.
The Ohio State Auditor’s office said Perik was indicted along with two other individuals. He stands accused of using multiple educational consulting companies to run a criminal racket that diverted Pell grants, as well as other federal and state aid.
“The Enterprise functioned for the general purpose of obtaining as much money as possible from the disbursement of Federal financial aid and State subsidies and then diverting those disbursements both through fraudulent reimbursements and as incentive compensation in violation of Federal law,” the indictment read.
“The Enterprise also accomplished its purpose by engaging in a scheme to defraud, including by disbursing and retaining financial aid for ineligible students, falsifying data and records and concealing data and records,” it continued.
Perik was hit with dozens of charges that included aggravated theft of $1.5 million or more, telecommunications fraud, bribery, money laundering, receiving stolen property, and records tampering.
The two others who were indicted with Perik are Nicole Rowe Colclasure and Michael Geoghegan.
What do you think should happen to Perik if found guilty?
He should face jail time
97% (37 votes)
He should pay restitution
3% (1 vote)
He should not be punished
0% (0 votes)
State Auditor Keith Faber said, “These public resources were supposed to help disadvantaged students in an area of the state where educational opportunities were scarce.”
“Instead, it appears these individuals took advantage of their positions, and students were left out in the cold,” he added.
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Faber’s office estimated that “millions of dollars in financial aid were improperly paid to entities owned and controlled by Perik and Colclasure.”
The alleged crimes took place between January 2017 and March 2022, the indictment noted.
U.S. Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent commented on the case, saying, “Since day one, President Trump and Secretary McMahon have tackled fraud, waste, and abuse, which requires a whole-of-government approach.”
“It is a disgrace that individuals may have taken advantage of the federal student aid programs that are intended to help students access postsecondary education,” he declared.
“We are proud to stand with Ohio Auditor Faber and his team to hold fraudsters accountable and protect the integrity of critical resources that millions of students and families rely on,” Kent concluded.
State records revealed that Perik has given almost $50,000 to the Rhode Island Democratic state committee and over $75,000 to individual candidates.
Among those who received donations are Rhode Island’s Democratic Gov. Dan McKee, Democratic state Attorney General Peter Neronha, and Democratic Rep. Seth Magaziner.
Perik’s attorney, Brad Barbin, issued a lengthy statement calling the charges “political retribution” and “purely political payback.”
He also stated that “Perik followed all the protocols and received sign offs from agency lawyers,” and claimed there was “no crime or lack of transparency.”
WJAR texted Perik’s wife to ask whether she would continue in her role as Democratic Party chair. She replied, “This is an Ohio matter and does not involve me.”
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