{"id":338608,"date":"2021-09-13T16:30:15","date_gmt":"2021-09-13T13:30:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/first-trial-of-college-admissions-scandal-begins\/"},"modified":"2021-09-13T16:30:15","modified_gmt":"2021-09-13T13:30:15","slug":"first-trial-of-college-admissions-scandal-begins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/first-trial-of-college-admissions-scandal-begins\/","title":{"rendered":"#First trial of college admissions scandal begins"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#First trial of college admissions scandal begins<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n        <\/aside>\n<p>Opening statements are slated to begin Monday in the first trial of the college admissions cheating scandal that ensnared celebrities <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2020\/08\/21\/lori-loughlin-sentenced-to-two-months-in-jail-for-college-scandal\/\">Lori Loughlin<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2019\/09\/13\/felicity-huffman-sentenced-to-two-weeks-in-jail-for-college-admissions-scandal\/\">Felicity Huffman<\/a> and was portrayed in the \u201cOperation Varsity Blues\u201d Netflix documentary.<\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors and defense lawyers are set to kick off the trial of Gamal Abdelaziz, a former\u00a0Wynn Resorts\u00a0executive, and John Wilson, a private-equity investor.<\/p>\n<p>The two are accused of paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to former college counselor and the scheme\u2019s mastermind William \u201cRick\u201d Singer to bribe staff and get their kids into the University of Southern California by falsely presenting them as athletic recruits.<\/p>\n<p>Dozens of high-profile parents, athletic coaches and others have been arrested in connection with the case, but Abdelaziz and Wilson\u2019s case is the first to go to trial, with many others having pleaded guilty. <\/p>\n<p>Singer, who has admitted to working with parents and others to rig test scores and bribe coaches at schools like USC and Yale, is awaiting sentencing for his role in the scam, which laid bare the stunning level of corruption in the US higher education system. <\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors have alleged that Abdelaziz paid $300,000 to Singer in 2017 to get his daughter, who didn\u2019t qualify for her high school varsity basketball team, into USC as a basketball recruit. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-01.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Former Wynn Resorts executive Gamal Abdelaziz.\" class=\"wp-image-19435135\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-01.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-01.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-01.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Former\u00a0Wynn Resorts\u00a0executive Gamal Abdelaziz paid Rick Singer in 2017 to get his daughter into USC as a basketball recruit.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Brian Snyder\/REUTERS<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Wilson similarly worked with Singer beginning in 2013 to get his son into USC as a water polo recruit and then later in 2018 to get his twin daughters into Harvard and Stanford as sailing recruits, prosecutors have alleged. <\/p>\n<p>He allegedly paid more than $1 million for the arrangements.<\/p>\n<p>In opening statements at the jury trial, defense attorneys will likely argue that Wilson and Abdelaziz believed their payments were legitimate donations and that USC\u2019s acceptance of their kids in turn was legal and routine. <\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors, though, have said it\u2019s a clear-cut case of fraud and lying, accusing the defense of misleadingly focusing on USC\u2019s admissions standards and not the behavior of the students\u2019 parents. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"Bruce Isackson.\" class=\"wp-image-19435140\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-03.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Prosecution is expected to call Bruce Isackson, a real-estate developer from Northern California and a parent in the scam who\u2019s been cooperating with prosecutors.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Michael Dwyer\/AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>USC, for its part, has said it wasn\u2019t aware of Singer\u2019s scam until 2018 when it cooperated with the investigation. <\/p>\n<p>US District Judge Nathaniel Gorton, who\u2019s presiding over the case in Massachusetts, emphasized at a recent hearing that \u201cUSC is not on trial.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors have said they don\u2019t intend to call Singer as a witness, though they have left open the possibility. He\u2019s already pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice for tipping off some of his clients after he first agreed to cooperate with investigators. <\/p>\n<p>In notes on his phone \u2014 which are now evidence in the case \u2014 Singer also claimed that federal agents were\u00a0pressuring him to lie\u00a0in recorded calls with parents, painting the payments they were making as bribes instead of donations.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-04.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"University of Southern California.\" class=\"wp-image-19435146\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-04.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-04.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-04.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>The University of Southern California has said it wasn\u2019t aware of Rick Singer\u2019s scam until 2018 when it cooperated with the investigation.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Reed Saxon\/AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The defense, if given the opportunity, may seize on those previous admissions.<\/p>\n<p>Prosecution is expected to call Bruce Isackson, a real-estate developer from Northern California and a parent in the scam who\u2019s been cooperating with prosecutors, as its first witness on Monday, Assistant US Attorney Stephen Frank said Friday in a hearing.<\/p>\n<p>Isackson and his wife, Davina, pleaded guilty in 2019 to charges that they worked with Singer to get their daughters into the University of California, Los Angeles and USC as athletic recruits.\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2021\/09\/13\/first-trial-of-college-admissions-scandal-begins\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#First trial of college admissions scandal begins&#8221; Opening statements are slated to begin Monday in the first trial of the college admissions cheating scandal that ensnared celebrities Lori Loughlin\u00a0and\u00a0Felicity Huffman and was portrayed in the \u201cOperation Varsity Blues\u201d Netflix documentary. Prosecutors and defense lawyers are set to kick off the trial of Gamal Abdelaziz, a&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":338609,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/varsity-blues-02.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[115872,71100,71442,82249,55484],"class_list":["post-338608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-9-13-21","tag-college-admissions-scandal","tag-colleges","tag-felicity-huffman","tag-lori-loughlin"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=338608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338608\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/338609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=338608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=338608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=338608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}