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Cryilstan Sowah-Nai, originally from Ghana, pleaded no contest to securing execution of documents by deception on Monday, April 28, according to the Northampton County District Attorney’s Office. Investigators say he misrepresented information on his Lehigh application, earning a student visa and racking up $127,213.70 in educational benefits before the university rescinded his admission midway through his third semester.
Sowah-Nai was sentenced to time served and transferred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation. As part of a negotiated plea, Lehigh University declined to pursue restitution.
Before his removal, Sowah-Nai styled himself online as a rising leader in global health. His now-deleted LinkedIn profile claimed he was majoring in population health with minors in molecular biology and military science. He also wrote about his role in an environmental justice project through Lehigh’s Social Impact Fellowship, saying the work “aligned with my life principle of making a positive impact wherever I find myself.”
Another Student Used Fake Death Certificate
Sowah-Nai isn’t the first international student to defraud Lehigh.
Just weeks earlier, Aryan Anand, 19, pleaded guilty after a Reddit post titled “I have built my life and career on lies” revealed how he falsified his entire college application. Anand, a student from India, created fake transcripts, forged financial documents, and even submitted a fraudulent death certificate for his father — who is still alive — to secure a full scholarship to Lehigh.
The scam was uncovered when a Reddit moderator noticed Anand’s only followed school was Lehigh and reported him to the university. Anand was arrested on felony forgery and theft of services charges. Though he faced up to 20 years in prison, Lehigh officials requested expulsion and removal from the country — and he has since been deported to India.
“This was great work by Lehigh and their police force,” said Assistant District Attorney Michael Weinert. “They were able to dig deep and find all this really was false.”
Roommate Poisoning Case Turned Deadly Serious
In 2023, former Lehigh student Yukai Yang, 25, from China, was sentenced to up to 20 years in prison for poisoning his Black roommate with thallium, a deadly and odorless heavy metal. Yang pleaded guilty to attempted murder after investigators found he had been slipping the substance into Juwan Royal’s food and mouthwash for weeks in 2018.
Royal suffered severe symptoms, including extreme pain in his feet, heart palpitations, nausea, and numbness before he was diagnosed with heavy metal poisoning.
Thallium, no longer produced in the U.S., has a notorious history of use in poisonings, according to the CDC. Yang had reportedly obtained it online. He claimed he had bought it to harm himself but instead turned it on his roommate after Royal suggested moving out their senior year, according to court testimony.
Yang was also charged with ethnic intimidation after writing a racial slur on Royal’s belongings with a black marker. In court, he apologized, saying, “I cannot undo the damage to your body. I cannot erase the pain I caused your family.” Royal’s father responded, “You get no forgiveness from me. Know that.”
Yang, who prosecutors say suffers from mental health issues, must serve at least seven years before becoming eligible for deportation to China. He is currently in state custody and has also been placed under a federal immigration detainer.
Pattern of International Student Crimes
Lehigh University has now seen three high-profile criminal cases involving international students: two involving fraudulent admissions and one involving a violent poisoning. All three have either been deported or are in the process of being removed from the U.S.
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