Around 25 million dollars in bribes are said to have flowed in recent years to provide children of rich parents places at elite universities in the United States. Among the defendants against whom the FBI investigates corruption are several celebrities such as actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin.
The key figure in the fraud scandal at renowned Yale University is Rudy Meredith. This is reported by the "New York Times". Meredith was the coach of the women's football team in Yale until November 2018 and then surprisingly resigned.
The 51-year-old had reportedly met in April 2018 at a Boston hotel with a parent. He demanded $ 450,000, in return for the daughter to get a place on the footballers contingent in Yale.
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Football coach Rudy Meredith
The parents paid $ 2,000 in cash immediately, the rest was to be transferred to a bank account. But he wanted to prepare the documents so that the daughter could be accepted as a sports student in Yale. But the FBI, which had already determined, secretly picked up the call. After the parents had transferred another 4000 dollars to the trainer shortly thereafter, Rudy Meredith was arrested.
The coach then cooperated with the investigators - and reported on a deal he had made in November 2017 with the adviser William Singer. Singer had introduced him to a man whose daughter was supposed to be at Yale University. Together, they faked their records - making it appear that the prospective student was an important player in a prominent club football team in California.
After the young woman was admitted, Rudy Meredith received $ 400,000 from Singer as a wage, according to the report. Former players of the Yale football team explained to the "New York Times" that they occasionally attracted attention from teammates who did not actually belong to the team because of their athletic performance. Some of these players were from wealthy families - which led to speculation that their parents might have donated money in exchange for coveted places.
"Affront to deeply rooted values"
In two cases, a trainer in Yale issued fake sports certificates in an application process, the university confirmed in a statement on Friday. One candidate was accepted and the other rejected, said University President Peter Salovey: "These criminal acts are an affront to the deep-rooted values of our community, such as fairness and honesty."
Intermediary William Singer is said to have collected a total of $ 25 million for faking the results of examinations and placement tests or made sure that applicants were classified as particularly good athletes - although they did not dominate their supposedly exercised sport or only much worse than stated. In addition to Yale, several other elite universities in the US are said to be affected.
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When applicants sign their applications in Yale, according to President Peter Salovey, they confirm that the content is true and complete. "Although I do not comment on specific disciplinary actions with respect to individual students, it is our long-standing practice to revoke the admission of students who have falsified their college applications."
The supposed footballer is likely to lose her place soon thereafter.