Lori Loughlin and Her Husband Are 'Finding Out Who Their Real Friends Are' Amid Scandal: Source
Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli’s alleged involvement in the college admissions bribery scam has left those in their social circle divided.
A source tells PEOPLE that some of the pair’s friends have been distancing themselves from the couple in light of the news, which broke on Tuesday.
“Lori and Mossimo are finding out quickly who their real friends are,” the insider says. “It’s not like they are the victims of a crime. They are the crime.”
“Many of their friends don’t want to be associated with them right now,” the source continues. “Their friends are shocked at the allegations.”
The insider went on to explain that Loughlin, 54, and Giannulli, 55, “always wanted the best” for daughters Olivia Jade, 19, and Isabella Rose, 20 — and often put pressure on their kids to succeed at school despite the fact that the girls did not appear to have an interest in academics.
“Olivia and Isabella’s personalities were always very different from their parents. They are average students. They have never been obsessed with school and didn’t seem to care that much,” the source says. “They attended school because their parents made them. Their focus was never about getting straight As. It was always clear that it was the parents that pushed them to go to school. Olivia always talks about her vlog. This is her passion. She never really understood why she needs to go to school.” (Neither of the daughters have been charged in connection with the scheme, and it is not known whether they were even aware of it.)
Despite their disinterest, Loughlin and Giannulli would still champion the girls’ triumphs among their friend circles.
“They love to talk about how amazing their daughters are,” the source says of Loughlin and Giannulli. “They are very competitive parents and they like to show off.”
A second source tells PEOPLE that in the wake of the scandal, those who know Loughlin are also saddened to learn of her alleged involvement in the crime.
“Lori has always been a no nonsense, seemingly together woman who knows what she wants and goes for it with zest. She exudes both confidence and folksy charm at the same time,” the second source says.
“This issue is shocking and greatly saddens many people,” says the second source. “I’ve heard she is devastated, and the whole family wants to hide from the world.”
The second source adds that Loughlin and her family focus on both beauty and career. “People have sort of been in awe of how Lori has been able to do it all and articulate it so well,” the second source continues.
Says the second source, “When you talked about Lori, it was like ‘wow, the amazing Lori.’ It is hard to get a grasp on what has happened.”
Loughlin and Giannulli were both arrested this week — she on Wednesday and he on Tuesday — on a felony charge of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud.
Documents allege that the couple “agreed to pay bribes totaling $500,000 in exchange for having their two daughters designated as recruits to the USC crew team — despite the fact that they did not participate in crew — thereby facilitating their admission to USC.”
Both were released on $1 million bonds. Loughlin is permitted to travel to British Columbia, where she has filming projects in Vancouver, but must surrender her passport in December, according to the O.C. Register. In addition to her travel restrictions, the judge also specified on Wednesday that Loughlin will be allowed to speak to her two daughters and husband about the charges, but to no one else connected with the case, Variety reported.
An attorney for Loughlin did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment. A representative for Loughlin had no comment.
The pair accounts for two of 50 people indicted as part of the alleged nationwide scheme, which broke on Tuesday when federal court records were unsealed in Boston. Other notable names include Desperate Housewives star Felicity Huffman and author Jane Buckingham.
According to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts, the widespread effort was made by wealthy families to get their children into top colleges by falsifying SAT scores, lying about their athletic skills, and more. It’s unclear if the children were aware of any of these alleged crimes.
Some named in the court documents allegedly paid bribes of up to $6 million to get their children into elite colleges, including Yale, Stanford, Georgetown, the University of Southern California, UCLA, the University of San Diego, University of Texas and Wake Forest, according to federal prosecutors.
In addition to parents and exam administrators, athletic coaches are also implicated in the scheme.
Admissions to the schools mentioned in the complaint are extremely competitive: For first-time, full-time undergraduates, only five percent of applicants get into Stanford, seven percent get into Yale, 17 percent get into Georgetown, 18 percent get into the University of Southern California and 29 percent get into Wake Forest, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
With reporting by LINDA MARX
