CHESAPEAKE, Va. — The co-owner of a Chesapeake barber college has been sentenced to more than five years in prison on charges he defrauded the Veterans Affairs Department out of more than $4.5 million.
Media outlets report 45-year-old William E. Grobes IV pleaded guilty to the charges in November 2016. His wife, Katherine, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and was awaiting sentencing.
The charges against the Grobes relate to their operation of the College of Beauty and Barber Culture from October 2011 through this past September. Court documents show the school collected more than $4.5 million under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, and veteran students collected $10.5 million more.
The documents say veterans “rarely, if ever,” received the required hours of instruction.
During the five years the school was open, only 11 students took the state licensing exam. Seven passed.
