Merchant marine instructor pleads guilty to defrauding the Coast Guard
By Paula Wethington
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Michigan (WWJ) — A Michigan man has pleaded guilty to a charge of falsifying records related to merchant mariner credentials.
Mel Stackpoole, 62, of St. Clair County entered his plea Tuesday in federal court to one count of knowingly altering and falsifying records and documents, “with the intent to impede the proper administration of a matter within the jurisdiction of the United States Coast Guard,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan said in its announcement.
Sentencing hearing is set for Dec. 18. Stackpoole faces a penalty of up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The result “endangered the safety of everyone who uses the waterways of our Great Lakes by deliberately circumnavigating the Coast Guard’s training and certification protocols and facilitating the issuance of credentials to unskilled and unqualified mariners.” U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. said.
At the time of the circumstances related in the case, Stackpoole was the owner and lead instructor of Great Lakes Charter Training, a marine training school that provided Coast Guard-approved training for merchant mariner credentials.
In August 2020, the district attorney’s office said Stackpoole provided the students enrolled in one of his classes with less than 50 hours of classroom instruction rather than the required 80 hours.
“He also instructed the students to provide false information regarding their prior sea service, medical history, and recreational drug use on their MMC applications to the Coast Guard,” the press release said. “Further, Stackpoole improperly provided the students with the answers to certain examination questions; changed students’ incorrect test answers into correct answers; and inflated the students’ test scores in order to reflect passing, rather than failing, grades.”
The students involved did get course completion certifications, “falsely signifying their successful completion of the course to the Coast Guard,” the report said.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Coast Guard Investigative Service.
“Integrity is the cornerstone of our maritime profession. When that trust is broken, it jeopardizes individual careers and the safety and security of our waterways. The U.S. Coast Guard stands firm in ensuring that those who choose to deceive or falsify their merchant mariner credential, or those who subvert the credentialing process, will be held accountable,” said Captain Richard Armstrong, Commander, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Detroit.
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