Ex-Miracle Mile chief admits ‘big mistakes,’ may have faked résumé

Los Angeles (RecordNet.com, Aug 11,2017): The woman who left the Miracle Mile Improvement District after abusing its credit card appears to have falsified her résumé with fraudulent college degrees.

Mimi Nguyen, 31, confronted with evidence she faked degrees from the University of California, Davis and Berkeley, issued a statement Thursday admitting to misrepresentation and dishonesty.

“I have made some big mistakes that have hurt my family, friends, colleagues, and my community,” the statement reads in part. “I am very, very sorry.”

Nguyen was hired in 2013 in part because her résumé boasted a BS in mathematics from UC Davis and an MBA in finance from UC Berkeley.

But Nguyen earned no degrees, officials at both universities say.

The revelation gives another black eye to a shopping district whose collective head must be spinning by now.

“To say that the MMID is shocked would be an understatement,” district board Chairman David Cherry said.

Nguyen’s “resignation-termination” as executive director occurred in July. Upon resigning, she disclosed she had done at least $40,000 worth of personal shopping on the district’s credit card during her four-year tenure.

Nguyen offered to repay the money. The district terminated her before her intended date of resignation and launched a forensic audit. A police investigation is ongoing.

A check with the universities under both Nguyen’s names — she once went by Nhan Ti Cao — as well as her date of birth and Social Security number belied Nguyen’s educational claims.

‒ UC Davis: “In our records, we have a Mimi Nguyen who started as a freshman at UC Davis in September 2003 and continued studies through December 2004,” said Julia Ann Easley, a university spokesperson. “No degree was awarded.”

Nor did Nguyen stand to earn a mathematics degree from Davis, as she claimed on her résumé.

“She majored in political science,” Easley said.