More charges have been filed by investigators in a fake nursing degree scam that dates back to 2023, when officials first announced the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida named 12 people in connection with the ongoing case, investigators dubbed Phase Two of Operation Nightingale.
WATCH BELOW: WPTV's Ange Toussaint speaks with Willa Hill of the Florida Nurses Association
Phase one of the investigation led to charges and the conviction of 30 people in 2023.
Investigators say the defendants created an illegal licensing and employment shortcut for aspiring nurses by selling fraudulent nursing degrees and transcripts.
Officials say 7,300 people obtained fake diplomas from the scheme.
On Sept. 4, 2025, new charges were filed against 12 people, including residents of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the nursing fraud. The defendants were described as owners or registered managers of private Florida nursing schools.
Charges were filed against two Palm Beach County residents, including Irene Matthews of Agape Academy of Sciences, a Delray Beach-based school. Charges were also filed against Gilbert Hyppolite of Techni-Pro Institute in Boca Raton.
State records show Agape Academy of Sciences was dissolved in December 2024, but the campus is still located in Delray Beach. Signs on the building say the school offers certificates and degrees in nursing. The phone number listed on the building is not in service.
State records also show that Techni-Pro Institute has been dissolved.
Willa Hill of the Florida Nurses Association says that is why she is pushing for better oversight of private nursing schools.
“It’s really just patient safety,” Hill said.
Hill is calling for tougher laws that would require more stringent guidelines for private nursing schools to operate.
“We’re the frontline of defense in making sure your families are safe. We’re the ones that see things when things go wrong, we’re the ones that report them, we’re the ones that react and so those people need to be highly educated, highly qualified,” Hill said.
Defendants face up to 20 years in prison for the conspiracy to commit wire fraud charge.
