RUTHERFORD COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) – A former Murfreesboro man has been indicted and arrested for impersonating a licensed professional when providing COVID testing, officials with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) announced.

At the request of 16th Judicial District Attorney Jennings Jones, TBI special agents began investigating an allegation that a man who had been providing COVID testing for various artists and venues had used a fraudulent diploma to obtain employment. During the course of the investigation, TBI said, agents developed information that Jacob Melnychuk created a fraudulent master’s degree diploma and portrayed himself to be a licensed professional. The investigation further revealed Melnychuk used a licensed professional’s information to submit numerous tests without that person’s knowledge.

Earlier this month, the Rutherford County Grand Jury handed down the indictment charging Melnychuk with one count of falsifying educational or academic records, three counts of impersonating a licensed professional, one count of identity theft and one count of forgery.

Melnychuk was arrested and booked into the Rutherford County Jail Sunday, Feb. 26, on a $100,000 bond.