A former University of Kentucky mining engineering professor who prosecutors say defrauded the university out of tens of thousands of dollars in items and services has been sentenced to a year in prison.
The U.S. attorney's office says U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell sentenced 52-year-old Dongping "Daniel" Tao on Thursday. Caldwell also ordered Tao to pay a $10,000 fine, more than $59,000 in restitution to UK and more than $2,200 in restitution to Georgia-Pacific LLC, a private company Tao worked for as a consultant.
Tao pleaded guilty in February and acknowledged receiving grant money from the university intended for research and using it instead for his consulting business to pay expenses, for which he then sought reimbursement.
