Published March 20, 2019

By DAN TOMASELLO

LYNNFIELD — A local CEO was one of the 50 individuals charged in a national college entrance scandal on March 12.

A criminal complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office charged John B. Wilson, 7 Ashley Ct., with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. He is accused of conspiring to bribe former University of Southern California water polo coach Jovan Vavic in order to get Wilson’s son recruited to USC’s men’s water polo team.

The complaint also alleges Wilson “sought to use bribes to obtain the admission of his two daughters to Stanford University and Harvard University as recruited athletes.”

Wilson is one of the 50 people, including Hollywood stars Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin, charged in a scheme in which wealthy parents allegedly bribed college coaches and other insiders to get their children into some of the nation’s most elite schools.

“These parents are a catalog of wealth and privilege,” U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling said while announcing the results of an investigation code-named Operation Varsity Blues. “For every student admitted through fraud, an honest and genuinely talented student was rejected.”

The complaint alleges Wilson paid $220,000 in order to get his son recruited to USC and $1 million to get his daughters recruited to Harvard and Stanford.

The Boston Globe reported Wilson was arrested in Texas on March 12. Vavic was charged with racketeering conspiracy.

William “Rick” Singer, 58, of Newport Beach, California, has pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Singer owned and operated the Edge College and Career Network LLC, also known as The Key, a for-profit college counseling and preparation business. Singer also served as the CEO of the Key Worldwide Foundation (KWF), a nonprofit corporation that he established as a purported charity.

The complaint alleges Singer informed law enforcement agents that he began working with Wilson in February 2012 while his son was beginning the college search process. The complaint alleges Wilson “agreed to make a purported contribution to KWF to facilitate a bribe to Vavic to designate Wilson’s son as a purported water polo recruit.”

“On or about March 26, 2013, Wilson emailed (Singer) and asked, ‘Would the other kids know (my son) was a bench warmer side door person?’” the complaint alleges. “In a follow-up email the next day, Wilson added: ‘So it sounds like even if (my son) practices all the time etc., it will be known that he is a bench warming candidate? Obviously his skill level may be below the other freshmen. In your view, will he be so weak as to be a clear misfit at practice etc.?’”

Singer allegedly told Wilson his son “would not actually be expected to play water polo for USC.” Singer allegedly told Wilson that his son would be able to walk away from the team after his freshman year.

According to the complaint, Vavic allegedly told Singer that he “needed an athletic profile for Wilson’s son and that it ‘needs to be a good resume.’” Singer allegedly provided Vavic with a “falsified profile that included fabricated swimming times and awards.”

After Wilson’s son still expressed interest in attending USC in January 2014, Vavic allegedly told Singer he would “present Wilson’s son to the USC subcommittee for athletic admissions with his ‘top walk-ons.’”

“On or about Feb. 26, 2014, Vavic emailed a USC athletics administrator that Wilson’s son would be the fastest player on our team,” the complaint alleges. “He swims 50 (yards) in 20 (seconds), my fastest players are around 22 (seconds). This kid can fly.”

The complaint alleges Wilson’s son was admitted to USC in February 2014. The complaint claims that Wilson’s private equity and real estate development firm wired $100,000 to KWF, $100,000 to The Key and $20,000 to Singer.

“On or about April 16, 2014, (Singer) withdrew a $100,000 cashier’s check, made out to ‘USC men’s water polo’ from The Key account,” the complaint alleges. “The purpose/remitter identified on the check was ‘Wilson family.’ On or about July 28, 2014, USC sent Wilson and his spouse a gift receipt for their $100,000 donation to USC Athletics.”

The complaint states that Wilson’s son withdrew from the men’s water polo team after his first semester at USC. According to the complaint, Wilson’s spouse stated their son was “unaware of this arrangement.”

In addition to the USC incident, the complaint alleges that Wilson inquired about potential “side door” opportunities for his two daughters during a phone call with Singer on Sept. 29, 2018.

“(Singer) explained, in substance, that he could get Wilson’s daughters into college through the athletic recruitment scheme even if they did not play the sport for which they were purportedly recruited,” the complaint alleges.

The complaint alleges that Singer, under the direction of law enforcement agents, “listed various side door options for Wilson’s daughters” in a phone call on Oct. 15, 2018. Wilson allegedly told Singer that he wanted to “pursue side doors for his daughters at Stanford and Harvard.”

“During the same call, (Singer) explained that if Wilson were to deposit $500,000 in KWF immediately, he would give Wilson first priority on any admission spots he secured because (Singer) had to give spots to ‘whoever’s gonna ante up,’” the complaint alleges.

According to the complaint, Wilson’s company allegedly wired $500,000 to “an account in the name of KWF in the District of Massachusetts.”

“Unbeknownst to Wilson, the account had been opened by (Singer) at the direction of federal agents,” the complaint states.

According to the complaint, Singer told Wilson on Oct. 27, 2018 that he was able to get a side door that would have allowed one of Wilson’s daughters to be recruited to Stanford’s sailing team after agreeing to a deal with head coach John Vandemoer, and that the deal “was hidden from Stanford.” Vandemoer has agreed to plead guilty to a charge of racketeering conspiracy in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

The complaint alleges that Singer had successfully recruited Wilson’s other daughter to Harvard University on Nov. 29, 2018 “through a fictitious women’s administrator.”

“In exchange for a $500,000 payment to her, the administrator would designate one of Wilson’s daughters as an athletic recruit,” the complaint alleges.

According to the complaint, Wilson allegedly wired another $500,000 to the Massachusetts account in the name of KWF on Dec. 11, 2018.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.