Former UWM Professor Defrauded $1.1M From Students: U.S. DOJ

MILWAUKEE, WI — A former University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee professor is expected to sign a guilty plea agreement for wire fraud and unlawful monetary transaction after he defrauded money from foreign exchange students, according to the United States Department of Justice.

Yue Liu, 41, of Mequon, was an engineering professor for UWM when he promised foreign UWM graduate program students they would be part of a program under his control that pays for tuition and other college costs, according to a DOJ news release.

In reality, students had already had their tuition waived because they were research assistants, and the program was not real, the news release said. Liu had emailed students under a fake name with false UWM logos and representations about the program, the DOJ said. Throughout the scheme, Liu collected over $1.1 million from the students and visiting professors, the news release said. The scheme had taken place between 2016 and 2020.

Portions of the money went to funding Liu's investment accounts and credit card bills, according to the DOJ, while other parts of the money went to a fraudulent research agreement between UWM and a fake entity from China in order to conceal the scheme.

If found guilty, Liu, who is also known as Troy Liu, faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for the wire fraud, and a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for the unlawful monetary transaction, the DOJ said.