A gifted student who h*cked into his professors’ computers and
changed his grades because it was ‘easier than working hard’ has been
sentenced to four years in jail.
Roy Sun, 25, masterminded a plot with two other students at Purdue
University to ensure he got straight As despite only attending one
class.
Sun and his accomplice, Mitsutoashi Shirasaki, placed devices on
their instructors’ computers to copy their passwords before logging in
and changing their grades late at night.
According to the Journal and Courier, Sun, who got a legitimate A in
the one class he did attend, along with a best student award, said: ‘It
became so much easier to change my grades than going to class and
working real hard.’
The scheme began in 2008 when Sun changed just one grade to see if he
would be caught. When the forgery went unnoticed he became bolder, and
roped other students into the plot.
Shirasaki, who now lives in Japan after Sun told him to return there,
used to sneak into academics’ offices along with Sun to plant keystroke
recorders – devices that record every key pressed on the computer.
Another student, Sujay Sharma, who was sentenced to 18 months, stood
watch at the door and also had one grade altered by Sun and Shirasaki
without knowing.
Sun and Shirasaki developed a system where they would log on to the
University system about 10 minutes before the deadline for entering
final grades, which was usually late at night, and then alter them
After graduating Sun went on to earn $70,000 as an engineer, before going on to study for a masters in his native Massachusetts.
However after losing his place at Boston University and having his
bachelor’s degree withdrawn, his defence attorney claims he is now
working as a part-time busboy, earning about $1,500 last year.
Sun admitted being the controlling force behind the plot, who had the expertise and equipment needed to put the scheme in place.
He will serve a total of 90 days in jail, before living out the rest of his sentence on supervised probation.
Before sentencing, Judge Thomas Busch said: ‘The most troubling thing
about this is how brilliant you are and how capable your are to devise
this and carry it out. … I worry about people who are as bright as you
who are as dishonest as you because you can do more damage.’
However, he added: ‘I don’t think that your future is hopeless. I
think you have the opportunity to rebuild your life and make your
parents proud of you.’
Source: Daily Mail
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