48°
Loughlin, the former “Full House” star, was sentenced to two months in prison on Friday, Aug. 21, while her husband was sentenced to five months for their roles in conspiring to pay a half-million-dollar bribe to get the couple’s two daughters into the University of Southern California.
The two had been engaged in a legal battle over the "Operation Varsity Blues" college admissions scam for more than a year.
Loughlin, 55, previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, while Giannulli, 56, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud and honest services wire and mail fraud.
As part of the sentence, Loughlin, who grew up in Suffolk County in Hauppauge, will also pay a $150,000 fine and serve 100 hours of community service.
Giannulli, who founded the clothing brand Mossimo, will pay a $250,000 fine and was ordered to serve 250 hours of community service.
"I deeply regret the harm that my actions have caused my daughters, my wife and others," Giannulli said during his virtual sentencing hearing. "I take full responsibility for my conduct. I'm ready to accept the consequences and move forward with the lessons I've learned from this experience."
Loughlin and Giannulli are among two dozen parents, college officials, and coaches who have pleaded guilty to the sweeping college admissions scandal that unfolded last year.
“The crime Giannulli and Loughlin committed was serious,” U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling stated. “Over the course of two years, they engaged twice in (William) Singer’s fraudulent scheme.
“They involved both their daughters in the fraud, directing them to pose in staged photographs for use in fake athletic profiles and instructing one daughter how to conceal the scheme from her high school counselor,” Lelling continued. “As between the defendants, the evidence suggests that Giannulli was the more active participant in the scheme,” he wrote.
“He engaged more frequently with Singer, directed the bribe payments to USC and Singer, and personally confronted his daughter’s high school counselor to prevent the scheme from being discovered, brazenly lying about his daughter’s athletic abilities.”
Click here to follow Daily Voice Stamford and receive free news updates.
