A Florida charter school principal says she “made a bad decision” in sending a $100,000 check to a scammer impersonating Elon Musk.
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A Florida principal resigned after writing a $100,000 check using the school’s money to a scammer impersonating Elon Musk.
Jan McGee said she believed Musk would invest millions in Burns Sci Tech in exchange for $100,000 upfront.
She’d talked with the person for at least 4 months despite staff warning her it was a scam, per local news station WESH.
A charter school principal in Florida has resigned after sending a check for $100,000 of the school’s money to a scammer posing as Elon Musk.
Dr. Jan McGee was the principal of Burns Science and Technology Charter School in Oak Hill, Florida, since the school opened in 2011. At a school board meeting Tuesday where she resigned, McGee said she believed the tech billionaire would invest millions of dollars in the school in exchange for $100,000 upfront, according to local news station WESH.
“I put myself into this position and into this mess and I made a bad decision,” McGee said, per WESH. “I am a very smart lady. Well-educated. I fell for a scam.”
Although other school staff warned her the person was a scammer, McGee had talked with the person for at least four months, according to WESH. The school’s business manager ultimately stopped the check before it cleared.
McGee apologized at the meeting, but several school administrators claimed she contributed to creating a toxic work environment, saying they’d rather quit than keep working for her, prompting her to resign, per WESH.
“I love this school more than anything else. If it means your administration is going to stay, I’m turning in my resignation,” she said.
The school and McGee did not immediately respond to requests for comment.