TYLER, TX – A former financial aid director at Texas College is facing federal charges after allegedly orchestrating a scheme to siphon off student financial aid for personal gain. Angela Speech, 43, of Shreveport, Louisiana, is accused of illegally diverting funds intended for students to herself and three accomplices.
Speech, who served as director of financial aid at the historically black college in Tyler, Texas, from August 2019 to February 2020, allegedly used her position to trigger payments to Jeremy Marshall, 24, also of Shreveport, Louisiana, as well as Devonaire Jones, 35, and Camyl Lewis, 24. The indictment alleges that these payments were made despite the recipients being ineligible to receive the funds.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas, the scheme involved knowingly misapplying, stealing, and fraudulently obtaining funds from the Pell Grant Program, the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Programs, and other federal loan programs. Speech and her alleged co-conspirators are accused of working in concert to defraud the system.
Speech and Marshall made initial appearances in federal court on December 7, 2022, before U.S. Magistrate Judge John D. Love. Jones and Lewis have also been indicted. The investigation was a joint effort by the U.S. Department of Education—Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Secret Service, highlighting the growing threat of financial aid fraud.
If convicted, Speech, Marshall, Jones, and Lewis each face up to five years in federal prison. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert Austin Wells and Lucas Machicek are prosecuting the case. It’s crucial to remember that an indictment is not a declaration of guilt; the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Texas College, founded in 1894 by ministers of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, has not commented on the indictment. This case serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerability of federal financial aid programs to exploitation and the importance of rigorous oversight. The Grimy Times will continue to follow this case as it develops.
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Key Facts
- Agency: U.S. Secret Service
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Press Release
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