Felicity Huffman Taken into Custody in Alleged College Admissions Scam
Felicity Huffman has been taken into custody following her indictment in an alleged college admissions cheating scam involving elite colleges and universities.
Huffman has been charged by federal prosecutors with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud. According to multiple outlets, including the Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter and CNN, she has been arrested and is presently in custody.
Her husband William H. Macy was seen arriving at the courthouse.
Hours later, the Associated Press and Reuters reported that Huffman can be released on $250,000 bond.
Federal court records unsealed Tuesday in Boston name 50 people, including Huffman and Fuller House actress Lori Loughlin, who have been indicted as part of the alleged nationwide scheme, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts.
“Dozens of individuals involved in a nationwide conspiracy that facilitated cheating on college entrance exams and the admission of students to elite universities as purported athletic recruits were arrested by federal agents in multiple states and charged in documents unsealed on March 12, 2019, in federal court in Boston,” the release says.
Athletic coaches from Yale, Stanford, the University of Southern California, Wake Forest and Georgetown, among others, are implicated, as well as parents and exam administrators, the release says.
Huffman, 56, allegedly gave $15,000 “to participate in the college entrance exam cheating scheme on behalf of her oldest daughter,” the indictment in the case states.
Loughlin allegedly gave $500,000 to say her child was part of the rowing team, when that was not true, the indictment states.
The indictment alleges the scheme helped students gain acceptance to top schools by helping them cheat on college exams.
Some named in the court documents allegedly paid bribes of up to $6 million to get their children into elite colleges, according to federal prosecutors.
Federal agents secretly recorded telephone calls with Huffman and a cooperating witness, according to the court papers, and also obtained emails from Loughlin allegedly implicating her in the scam, the documents state.
Reps for Huffman and Loughlin did not immediately return calls by PEOPLE for comment.
