I agree with your premise that the spirit of a law shouldn't be violated to send a message but I don't see that it applies here.
For me this doesn't pass the sense test: should a person be able to knowingly, intentionally fake the results of a scientific experiment in order to secure a grant of taxpayer money? No. No more than you should be able to fake the 'results' of your yearly income, say, for the purpose of receiving welfare.
> "If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced."
(ofc: Replace PAINT with anything you like!)