U.S. slaps more charges on parents in college admissions cheating scandal

[April 10, 2019]    BOSTON (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors filed fresh conspiracy and money laundering charges on Tuesday against 16 parents charged with paying bribes to secure their children seats in elite universities in the largest college admissions scam uncovered in U.S. history.

Actor Lori Loughlin, and her husband, fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, leave the federal courthouse after facing charges in a nationwide college admissions cheating scheme, in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., April 3, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo

Parents including "Full House" actor Lori Loughlin and her fashion designer husband Mossimo Giannulli had already been charged with racketeering conspiracy for their alleged role in the scheme, in which parents paid some $25 million in bribes to secure their offspring places at universities including Yale, Georgetown and the University of Southern California.

Fourteen parents, including "Desperate Housewives" star Felicity Huffman, on Monday pleaded guilty to taking part in the scam, masterminded by California college admissions consultant William "Rick" Singer.

Singer last month pleaded guilty to facilitating the cheating scam and bribing coaches to present the parents' children as fake athletic recruits.

Prosecutors have not yet charged any applicants and said that in some cases the parents involved took steps to try to prevent their children from realizing they were benefiting from fraud.

Colleges have begun revoking the admissions and pursuing expulsion of students who obtained their seats as a result of the fraud.

(Reporting by Scott Malone, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

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