A federal prosecutor has charged a former administrator at UNC-Charlotte with falsifying visa records so that international students could stay in the country illegally.
Thomas C. Briggs allegedly altered the database used to monitor foreign students at UNC-Charlotte to incorrectly show that 66 students were enrolled full-time. In a statement issued by his lawyer, Briggs admits to entering the false information, but says he did it out of concern for the students and not for any political belief. International student visas have been closely watched by federal authorities since 9-11. Several of the hijackers on that day entered the country on student visas. UNC-Charlotte fired Briggs when school officials discovered the problem in 2009. If convicted, Briggs could face 5 years in jail for each of the 66 counts.