The usual extent people go to when “lying” on their résumé is lacing it with half-truths or clever omissions.
One woman, however, went as far as to create a forged degree from Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
44-year-old Fonseka Wannerichega Hema Ranjini forged and laminated a Bachelor in Engineering degree in 2005.
She then applied for various jobs using the false degree, being hired at five companies.
Among them, the Walt Disney Company discovered her trick and Fonseka has since pleaded guilty to cheating and forgery charges.
In 1998, Fonseka enrolled in NTU to study mechanical and production engineering.
She did not manage to get a degree and dropped out in Aug 2004, according to The Straits Times.
Undeterred, she designed a fake certificate on a computer in 2005, printing it out and laminating it.
The forged degree claimed she graduated from NTU with a Bachelor in Engineering with third-class honours. In reality, her highest qualification was the ‘A’-Levels.
Source: Wikipedia
Fonseka then used the forged document in her job applications. She hoped it would net her higher salaries, reported Channel NewsAsia (CNA).
Marshall Cavendish Education later hired her the same year as an assistant managing editor. She earned a salary of S$4,200 a month.
From Nov 2012 to May 2013, she became an acquisition associate for the same pay.
Publisher Scholastic Education International hired her in July 2015 as an assistant managing editor. Fonseka had once again used the forged degree in her job application.
The assigned role featured a minimum qualification requirement of a Bachelor’s degree.
Source: Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels, for illustration purposes only
While initially paid S$4,300 a month, Scholastic promoted her to managing editor in 2016 with a pay of S$4,600.
In Feb 2017, the company fired her for “unsatisfactory work performance”. She earned a total of S$83,800 there.
Oxygen Studio Designs then hired her in 2018, paying a total of S$25,400.
According to court documents, Fonseka also used her degree to land a job at Cengage Learning Asia. They paid her around S$190,500 in total.
In 2021, Fonseka applied to The Walt Disney Company (Southeast Asia). The media giant hired her as a learning editor in June that year.
She earned a monthly salary of S$6,800 and a transport allowance of S$1,084 for a total of S$7,884 a month.
Source: Ritchie on Google Maps
After her employment, The Walt Disney Company sent her certificate for validation. NTU confirmed that they had not issued the degree to Fonseka.
An NTU staff then lodged a police report in Oct 2021.
When confronted by the company, Fonseka alleged that she withdrew in her final year.
She purported that NTU issued the certificate on her request to prove she had enrolled there. She further claimed not to be aware of its invalid nature.
In Dec 2021, Fonseka subsequently resigned from The Walt Disney Company. They had paid her around S$47,300 during her employment.
Fonseka pleaded guilty in court to two charges of cheating and one for forgery on 23 Nov.
The judge will also take two further charges of cheating into consideration.
The four charges of cheating did not include Marshall Cavendish despite the use of the forged degree, according to CNA.
She earned a total of around S$347,000 at those four companies involved in the case.
The court will sentence her on 6 Dec. Each count of cheating can net up to three years’ jail and/or a fine. The charge of forgery could get her a jail term of up to seven years, plus a fine.
Earlier this year, a Malaysian government intern was found to have lied about his NASA scholarship and university course.
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Featured image adapted from MS News and Wikipedia.
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