A South Windsor man falsely claimed he was a college student and deceived his grandparents into giving him nearly $700,000 in related expenses, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Officials said 32-year-old Douglas Senerth pleaded guilty to taking approximately $679,000 from his grandparents.
Court records show that between 2011 and 2019, Senerth defrauded his grandmother and late grandfather by falsely claiming to be a college student and persuading them to give him approximately $419,000 to pay for nonexistent college tuition and other related expenses. He also asked for $260,000 by falsely claiming that he'd invest their money into an investment fund run by one of his nonexistent professors, according to federal officials.
As a part of the scheme, Senerth made fraudulent college transcripts, letters and email accounts to corroborate his lies, according to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut Leonard Boyle.
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He's been detained in state custody since February of last year, when he was arrested on unrelated charges.
Senerth pleaded guilty to wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. He's scheduled to be sentenced on May 17.
Officials said he's agreed to pay restitution of the $679,000 he took.
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The incident is under investigation by the FBI.
