Former Penn State professor accused of $3M fraud

PITTSBURGH - The Department of Justice has charged a former professor at Penn State University with fraud, false statements and money laundering relating to $3 million in federal research grants.

The DOJ alleges in a release Tuesday that 55-year-old Craig Grimes of Raleigh, N.C. defrauded the National Institutes of Health between 2006 and 2011, while he was a professor of Material Science and Engineering at Penn State.

Grimes allegedly promised to direct about $510,000 to Penn State's Hershey Medical Center, but never did so, and made false statements on another federal grant.

If convicted, Grimes faces up to 35 years in prison and a fine of $750,000.

A message left at a number listed for Grimes was not immediately returned.