A 3rd Parent Pleads Guilty in College Admissions Scheme

A 3rd Parent Pleads Guilty in College Admissions Scheme
California businessman Stephen Semprevivo departs federal court in Boston, on May 7, 2019, after pleading guilty to charges that he bribed the Georgetown tennis coach to get his son admitted to the school. (Steven Senne/AP Photo)
The Associated Press
5/9/2019
Updated:
5/9/2019

BOSTON—A California executive who pleaded guilty to charges that he paid $400,000 in bribes to get his son into Georgetown University has been fired.

Stephen Semprevivo pleaded guilty Tuesday, May 7, in Boston federal court. He is the third parent to plead guilty in the vast college admissions bribery scheme.

Authorities say Semprevivo gave $400,000 to an admissions consultant who paid off then-Georgetown tennis coach Gordon Ernst for pretending Semprevivo’s son was a team recruit. Semprevivo’s attorney, Steven Boozang, declined to comment.

Ernst has pleaded not guilty to accepting $2.7 million in bribes to designate at least 12 applicants as recruits.

Semprevivo was an executive at Agoura Hills-based Cydcor, which provides companies with outsourced sales teams. In a Tuesday statement, Cydcor said Semprevivo’s charges “do not live up to our standards.”