Accreditation Revoked, Chancellor Indicted, LLC Dissolved
The sudden closure of Richmond Gabriel University (RGU) in St. Vincent have left students without transcripts, refunds or a clear path to complete their degrees. Documents released by students point to financial mismanagement, administrative deception and a coordinated cover-up involving RGU’s leadership across multiple jurisdictions.
Key Facts and timeline:
- In May 2024, RGU announced plans to open a campus in Curaçao. The project never materialized. Students were told the Arnos Vale and Belair campuses in St. Vincent were closing temporarily for renovations.
- Behind the scenes, staff salaries and utility bills went unpaid. School officials attempted to remove equipment and shift operations to Curaçao without settling debts in St. Vincent.
- In February 2025, the Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) revoked RGU’s accreditation. The university’s campuses and bus were seized.
- The last official memo from RGU President Dr. Maneharran Paulpillai assured students their credits would transfer to a “partner university.” No such university has materialized, and no further communication has been issued.
- Tuition payments were first routed through Global Higher Education Inc., a Canadian company controlled by Dr. Paulpillai and his mother, Theresa Paulpillai. Later, students were instructed to send funds to Richmond Gabriel University LLC, a U.S.-based shell entity linked to Dr. Sameer Suhail, who is now federally indicted in the U.S. for a $15 million fraud scheme involving Loretto Hospital in Chicago.
- RGU students were assigned clinical rotations at Loretto through a business run by Suhail’s wife, Dena Besumi Suhail.
- Sameer Suhail has since fled the U.S. and is reportedly operating a cosmetic surgery clinic in Dubai under the name American Accelerated Aesthetics.
- In a September 2024 letter, Dr. Paulpillai denied any affiliation between RGU SVG and Suhail’s LLC. However, official documents—including wire instructions and registration filings—show direct links.
- RGU LLC was involuntarily dissolved by the Illinois Secretary of State in March 2025 for failure to file annual reports.
Allegations of Deception
Dr. Gomattie Chunilall, RGU’s Dean of Student Affairs, is under scrutiny for her role in misleading students. She worked closely with Dr. Paulpillai and Dr. Suhail on the failed Curaçao expansion. Students allege she made false assurances and discouraged questions about accreditation.
“This was not confusion—it was a cover-up,” said Derick Jr. Ambrose, a student now advocating for justice. “Dr. Chunilall actively suppressed information, threatened students who asked hard questions, and lied about the school’s legitimacy.”
“Every student I know was misled. The Curaçao project was a front, the LLC was a shell, and we were told to pay into a business that legally didn’t exist by March,” added another student.
Fallout and Student Demands
According to SVG’s Finance Minister, RGU’s closure resulted in over $2 million USD in lost economic activity for the country.
Students—many of whom feared retaliation—are now speaking out and calling for:
- Immediate and unconditional release of transcripts, without coercion or retroactive scholarship clawbacks
- Formal investigations by authorities in SVG, the U.S., and Canada into financial fraud and institutional misconduct
- Accountability for those involved, including Dr. Paulpillai, Dr. Chunilall, Dr. Sameer Suhail, Joseph Hylak-Reinoltz (legal counsel), and Ali Syed (accountant)
- Support from the SVG government for students facing immigration, housing, and financial distress due to the school’s collapse
“This is not just a student crisis—it’s an institutional failure,” said Edward Taylor, a Canadian student. “RGU had great promise and served its community well for years. We are committed to exposing the ethical breaches and seeking justice so that students can complete their education and those responsible are held accountable.”
