Man jailed for forging thousands of fake university degrees

David Grundy, 61, worked with his brother for more than a decade, making £900,000 and securing thousands of people around the world skilled jobs they were not qualified for.

In an investigation led by the National Trading Standards eCrime Team, hosted by City of York Council and North Yorkshire Council, the brothers were found to have advertised “high quality” and “flawless” certificates from universities across the globe.

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The Court heard how Grundy, of Coton Avenue, Stafford, had used specialist equipment to create the fakes – some of which were sold for more than £1,000 each.

Trading Standards officers confirmed that at least 70 people in the UK were using the brothers’ services – which were customised to help people land places on higher education courses and jobs in engineering, occupational health and safety, teaching, accountancy, biomedical science and law.

Speaking about this, a spokesperson for City of York Council said: “Grundy was able to produce certificates for any purpose, with no concern given to the possible risks to employers or the public.

“In 2021, a Trading Standards investigation began and in December of that year a warrant was executed at Grundy’s home.

“Specialist equipment used to produce the counterfeit certificates was seized, including embossing stamps, holograms, high-grade paper and a laser engraver.

“A handwritten list containing almost 300 customer names was also recovered, offering a snapshot of the global customer base.” 

The Joint Council for Qualification (JCQ) had instructed solicitors to warn Grundy – demanding he stop making the fake certificates.

The Court heard how Grundy had ignored the formal warning.  

A JCQ spokesperson said: “JCQ welcomes today’s sentencing and was pleased to support this prosecution.

“Students work hard to achieve their qualifications, and teachers work hard to support them.

“Fake certificates undermine that effort and today’s outcome reflects how serious and unacceptable this activity is.”

Councillor Jenny Kent, Executive Member for Environment at City of York Council, added: “Mr Grundy’s actions were damaging and dishonest at every level, cheating everyone who studies hard and pays for genuine qualifications, and showing no regard for the public who should be able to trust that qualifications mean what they say.

“Thanks go to the dedicated National Trading Standards team for their work in achieving a successful prosecution.”

Grundy was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment on Friday (March 13) after pleading guilty to fraudulent trading at York Magistrate’s Court on September 4.