Dodgy ‘doctor’ got fake certificate from same university as dog

A fake principal and self-proclaimed doctor bought his certificate from the same dodgy diploma mill that gave a pug dog named Chester an MBA. LISTEN TO THE PODCAST

Neil Lennie bought his certificate from an illegal diploma mill in Texas that also gave an MBA to Chester the pug. Picture: Supplied

Fraudster principal and self-proclaimed “Dr” Neil Lennie gained his doctorate certificate from the same fake online university as a pug called Chester.

Lennie used his doctorate title to lure students to his private school, tutoring college and plastered the phony credential on billboards, promotion material and letters to the editor.

But the Herald Sun can reveal the acclaimed “doctor” Lennie bought his certificate from Rochville University, an illegal diploma mill in Texas, United States.

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It comes as several industry leaders demand stricter regulation around tutoring — a $1.1 billion industry in Australia — after Lennie was able to pose as a qualified educator to bring in paying students.

While teachers are required to follow strict standards, tutoring businesses have been described as an “unregulated industry” with cowboy operators.

Lennie’s Rochville doctorate certificate was uncovered in a folder during a police raid on his Box Hill home in 2019.

The same University was exposed as giving a pug dog called Chester Ludlow an MBA a decade earlier.

Following his pleas of guilty to four counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception, “Dr” Lennie’ continues to be listed as the principal of his tutoring business, Imperial College.

Neil Lennie. Picture: David Geraghty

The website states Dr Lennie interviews all prospective students and discusses career options, subject choices and study techniques.

“True experts are hard to find so Dr Lennie’s knowledge and advice are very valuable,” the Imperial College site read on Wednesday.

The head of Australia’s tutoring association has called for the consumer watchdog to open an investigation into Lennie’s private college.

Mohan Dhall, the chief executive of Australian Tutoring Australia, said Lennie’s use of the doctorate title may be “deceptive or misleading” and therefore could “be subject of an inquiry” by consumer affairs.

Echoing calls for more regulation on rogue tutoring operators, education consultant Colin Turner said “when you get someone like Lennie doing this, it just makes it very obvious the need for this kind of regulation”.

“It’s too important to just allow people who are charming and engaging to work with our kids without certain training, without certain safeguards for those kids well being,” he said.

The Herald Sun contacted the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, which said the issue was a matter for Consumer Affairs Victoria, which did not respond by deadline.

Lennie was sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order last month for deceiving Mount Scopus, Haileybury, Caulfield Grammar and Overnewton into giving him jobs to which he was not entitled.