FastCon: Unequal Indictments examine the FastTrain College financial aid controversy, stressing the unequal legal repercussions its staff members suffered in comparison to those in comparable for-profit school fraud situations. The Florida-based for-profit college operated from 2009 until 2012.

 

Led by owner Alejandro Amor, the institution participated in dishonest practices to gain over $35 million in federal student funding. These actions included advising ineligible students, some without high school diplomas, to be dishonest on financial assistance applications to enroll them in courses. FastTrain in several instances manufactured fake diplomas to back up their requests.

 

The money acquired was spent on personal costs such as personal airplanes and real estate. This documentary compares the severe sentences to the relatively mild punishments given to executives from other for-profit organizations engaged in comparable fraudulent behavior. For example, other schools such as Corinthian Colleges, American Career Institute, DeVry, Westwood, University of Phoenix, and ITT Technical Institute, were found guilty of similar frauds, yet resulting in settlements and fines without individuals facing jail time. This difference calls into question justice and consistency in the prosecution of white-collar offenses within the for-profit education industry.