More than two dozen people have been charged with helping aspiring nurses obtain phony diplomas and transcripts that propelled many of them into jobs caring for patients, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.

According to three recently unsealed indictments, three accredited South Florida nursing schools are accused of issuing more than 7,600 fraudulent diplomas. The schools — Siena College and Sacred Heart International Institute in Broward County and Palm Beach School of Nursing in Palm Beach County — are all now closed.

According to the Miami Herald, citing federal authorities and court records, students each paid $10,000 for a licensed practical nurse degree and $17,000 for a registered nurse diploma. In all, the schemes raked in $114 million from 2016 to 2021, authorities said.

The aspiring nurses still had to pass licensing exams, but the bogus diplomas allowed them to avoid completing courses and clinicals needed to be eligible to take the test.

About a third of those who paid for diplomas went on to pass their licensing exams, mainly in New York, which has no limit on how many times a candidate can take the test, the Herald reported. Nurses certified in New York may practice in other states, including Florida.

Authorities say the nurses who passed their exams could lose their licenses but they won’t be criminally charged, according to the Herald.

“Not only is this a public safety concern, it also tarnishes the reputation of nurses who actually complete the demanding clinical and course work required to obtain their professional licenses and employment,” Markenzy Lapointe, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, said in a statement. Lapointe added that “a fraud scheme like this erodes public trust in our health care system.” 

“The alleged selling and purchasing of nursing diplomas and transcripts to willing but unqualified individuals is a crime that potentially endangers the health and safety of patients and insults the honorable profession of nursing,” added Omar Pérez Aybar, special agent-in-charge with the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General.

All 25 suspects are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and most are also charged with wire fraud. They each face up to 20 years in prison if convicted. 

The suspects are from Delaware, New York, New Jersey, Texas and Florida. Authorities executed search warrants in connection with what they call “Operation Nightingale,” named after modern nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale.

Many of the suspects are accused of recruiting people who sought nursing credentials and then working with owners, managers and employees of the schools, whom also have been charged, for them to receive unearned diplomas and fabricated transcripts.

One school owner, Palm Beach School of Nursing’s Johanah Napoleon, was previously charged and pled guilty to conspiring to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, as well as wire fraud. 

“What is disturbing about this investigation is that there are over 7,600 people around the country with fraudulent nursing credentials who are potentially in critical health care roles treating patients,” said Chad Yarbrough, acting special agent-in-charge with the FBI’s Miami office.