The Muncie Fire Department has punished at least nine EMTs in a cheating scandal that rocked the department, according to WTHR.
According to state officials, Capt. Troy Dulaney coordinated the scheme by sending a group text to the eight students in the January 2023 basic EMT course offered at the department’s training center. Dulaney’s unsolicited text included questions and answers to help the recruits pass their National Registry examination.
Dulaney “indicated that since he had ‘invested’ in the students… they should ‘invest back in him,’” according to the state’s report.
The state issued an order to revoke all of Dulaney’s EMS certifications for the next seven years.
The state’s report acknowledges the students were put in a “challenging situation” when Dulaney texted them. However, the report indicates, the students “still cooperated by not reporting the misconduct and by offering return information to Captain Dulaney.”
The eight recruits were censured by the state for their silence, placed on a two-year probation period and had their February National results revoked. In addition, they must re-take the exam and pay a $100 civil penalty.
The state is not taking action against the fire department because of insufficient evidence that the department’s EMS instructors were involved in the cheating. Dulaney is not a full-time instructor with the department.
