‘Full House’ actress out on US$1m bail
LOS ANGELES: Full House actress Lori Loughlin appeared in federal court here on Wednesday to face charges of taking part in a scheme, in which dozens of wealthy parents are accused of paying for their children to cheat their way into prestigious United States universities.
Magistrate Steve Kim ordered Loughlin, one of several high-profile figures from entertainment and business caught up in the scandal, released from federal custody on US$1 million (RM4.09 million) bond following a brief hearing.
Douglas Hodge, the former chief executive of the investment firm Pimco, and another of the 33 parents charged in the US$25 million scam, appeared earlier in the day in a Boston court.
He was released on US$500,000 secured bond by a federal magistrate who overruled a federal prosecutor’s objection to Hodge keeping his passport.
Loughlin and Hodge are among 50 people charged with taking part in a scam that steered graduating high school students into elite universities, including Yale, Georgetown and Stanford, by cheating the admissions process.
The University of Southern California’s (USC) interim president, Wanda Austin, issued a statement saying anyone involved who applied for the upcoming academic year would be denied admission, while current students implicated in the scheme would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
USC said on Tuesday two employees — a senior associate athletic director and women’s water polo coach — were fired in connection with the scandal.
Another parent charged in the scheme, Manuel Henriquez, resigned as chief executive officer of the finance company Hercules Capital Inc, the company said early on Wednesday.
Gordon Caplan, who prosecutors said paid US$75,000 last year to have some of his daughter’s wrong answers corrected on a college entrance exam, was placed on leave from his post as co-chairman of the global law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher, the company said on Wednesday.
The mastermind of the scheme, William “Rick” Singer, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to racketeering charges. Prosecutors in the US Attorney’s Office in Boston say his company, Edge College & Career Network, made US$25 million since embarking on the fraud in 2011, offering what he promised was a “guarantee” of admission.
After months of having his calls wiretapped, Singer ended up cooperating with investigators last September, helping them secretly record incriminating conversations he had with parents.
Loughlin is accused of paying Singer US$500,000 to help both her daughters cheat their way into USC by bribing an athletics official at the school to pretend the girls were gifted rowers.
Her husband, designer Mossimo Giannulli, is also charged with fraud, and appeared in court in Los Angeles on Tuesday before being released on US$1 million bail.
One of the daughters, Olivia Giannulli, has become a prominent “influencer” on social media under the name “Olivia Jade”.
“Officially a college student!” she captioned an Instagram photograph she posted in September, which showed her in her USC dorm room decorated with items she had ordered from online retailer Amazon.com Inc, which paid her for the post.
Other notable parents charged by the Boston US Attorney’s Office include actress Felicity Huffman, who starred in Desperate Housewives; and Bill McGlashan Jr, who headed a buyout investment arm of private equity firm TPG Capital, which put him on indefinite leave after he was charged.