Friday, September 19, 2008
By BRENDAN KIRBY
Staff Reporter
A Foley man who was fired this summer from his job at an online university based in Orange Beach has been charged with using a fraudulent Social Security number to take out tens of thousands of dollars in federal student loans.
In one case, according to a criminal complaint filed in Mobile, Christopher Adalikwu failed to attend the school that he listed on his loan application.
Law enforcement agents arrested Adalikwu, 47, on Wednesday at the Foley post office. He made an appearance Thursday in U.S. District Court in Mobile, and U.S. Magistrate Judge Sonja Bivins set a detention hearing for Monday.
Prosecutors have said they believe that he is a risk to flee if he is released from jail.
Adalikwu's lawyer Robert Ratliff said that he knew little about the case.
He said Adalikwu moved to the United States from his native Nigeria when he was about 18.
"Unfortunately, he comes from a different society where the rules are different," he said.
Mobile Press-Register
