A Ghanaian citizen living in Greenwich, Connecticut, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for orchestrating a tuition refund scheme at the University of Connecticut. Dickson Alorwornu, also known as “Dixon Al,” age 36, received his sentence from U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford. He will also serve two years of supervised release after his prison term.
According to evidence presented at trial, Alorwornu used stolen identities in December 2017 to submit two non-degree student applications to UConn. He then funded these accounts with over $62,000 using credit card information stolen from three victims. In early 2018, he withdrew from the courses and requested refunds from UConn, which transferred about $46,000 into bank accounts controlled by Alorwornu.
The investigation found that the email accounts used by Alorwornu in this scheme were also involved in defrauding other universities out of more than $500,000.
Alorwornu was arrested on February 1, 2023. A jury convicted him on October 29, 2024 of two counts of wire fraud.
His criminal record includes a previous conviction in New York in 2017 for crimes involving the use of stolen credit cards and personal identifying information belonging to others.
Alorwornu is currently released on a $50,000 bond and must report to prison by April 20.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the UConn Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward Chang and Elena Coronado prosecuted the case.
“David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that DICKSON ALORWORNU, also known as ‘Dixon Al,’ 36, a citizen of Ghana residing in Greenwich, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford to 48 months of imprisonment and two years of supervised release for operating a tuition refund scheme using stolen identities.”
###
