Even though his son did not play tennis, a former tech executive bribed $300000 and ensured his son’s way to Georgetown as a tennis recruit. For doing so, he was sentenced on Monday to a year-long of home confinement.
After pleading guilty to the count of conspiracy for committing mail fraud and honest services mail fraud, Peter Dameris, appeared before the court via a video, taking into consideration the restrictions of the Coronavirus pandemic. Peter is a resident of Pacific Palisades, California, and he appeared before a Boston federal court judge.
Included with year-long home confinement are a $95000 fine and three years of supervised release.
The court’s judgment came after hearing the prosecutors demand to sentence Peter for 21 months of home confinement and a fine of $95000 and Dameris’ lawyers asking for probation only by claiming the leniency towards Peter for helping a son who has leukemia.
“I really feel for your family, and understand your anguish,” said Richard Stearns, U.S. District Judge to Dameris. Stearns also stated showing concern,” You have lived a good life, and I believe you deserve some reward for that,” to Dameris.
“I am enormously remorseful for the actions that have brought me before you today,” spoke Dameris in tears adding how he regrets his involvement in this scheme and takes full responsibility for the same. “My life’s sentence is, I am burdened with the memories of what I’ve done that have hurt my family and others,” added Dameris cryingly.
Prosecutors allege of Dameris’ agreement in 2015 for funneling the money through a sham charity, the same one set up by Rick Singer. Singer, the alleged ringleader of this scheme, steered roughly half of the money to Georgetown’s former tennis coach, Gordon Ernst, who helped get Dameris’ son accepted as a tennis recruit.
Ernst is accused of accepting $2.7 million in bribes, although having pleaded not guilty, has resigned from Georgetown in 2018.
Along with Dameris, more than 50 parents, coaches, and others have been charged since last year when this complete scheme was revealed. Authorities say that parents have been paying hefty bribes for getting their children into top universities with fake athletic credentials and bogus test scores.
Apart from this case, other accused are pushed for prison time by the prosecutors, the relief, in this case, is because of “unusual and compelling personal circumstances.” Loughlin, the “Full House” actress, and her husband were sentenced for two and five months in prison respectively. Felicity Huffman, the “desperate housewives” actress was sentenced to two weeks in prison, after having pleaded guilty for paying $15000 to have someone manipulate her daughter’s entrance exam.