Harvard student pleads guilty to academic fraud

A student who forged transcripts and letters of recommendation to get into Harvard University has plead guilty to charges of larceny and identify fraud. According to the Boston Globe Adam Wheeler "was arrested and indicted this spring on 20 counts after an investigation showed he had spent the last three years plagiarizing the writings of others while collecting awards for his academic prowess both at Harvard and, before that, at Bowdoin College in Maine." When applying to Harvard he falsified grades and letters of recommendation from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a prestigious prep school despite never having attended either institution. He also claimed to speak Armenian fluently and to have published several books. Wheeler who says he is "ashamed and embarrassed" has been sentenced to 10 years probation and has been fined $45,800 by Middlesex Superior Court.