Drexel University to Pay Nearly $200G After Professor Used Federal Grant Money at Strip Clubs, Sports Bars for 10 Years

A former Drexel University professor spent nearly $200,000 in federal grant funds to bankroll a decade of visits to seedy strip clubs and sports bars in Philadelphia — and prosecutors say the Pennsylvania school now must pay back the misused money.

The Department of Justice announced Monday an agreement with the Philadelphia-based school where Drexel agreed to pay $189,062 to “resolve liability” after it was discovered that Dr. Chikaodinaka D. Nwankpa “submitted improper charges against federal grants.”

Nwankpa was serving as the head of Drexel’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering when prosecutors said he spent the majority of federal research funds on “gentlemen’s clubs and sports bars.”

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“This is an example of flagrant and audacious fraud, and a shameful misuse of public funds.” U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain said in a statement. “The agencies providing these grant funds expect them to be used towards advancements in energy and naval technology for public benefit, not for personal entertainment.”

The funds used for Nwankpa’s personal interests came from eight federal grants for energy and naval technology-related research received from the Department of the Navy, the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.

{snip} [Nwankpa] has not been charged with a crime.

Chikaodinaka D. Nwankpa