Who is William Rick Singer, the alleged leader of the college confession scandal?

William Rick Singer, founder of Edge College, a for-profit company specializing in college preparation, is also the mastermind behind one of the biggest college scams that has hit the states. -United. expensive fees – to ensure that the requests of his customers were satisfied.

Singer, 58, has been dubbed the "leader" behind the ploy. He would have collected about $ 25 million from dozens of individuals, including actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin, over almost a decade, to entice coaches and school administrators to claim that their children were sporty. recruit to ensure their admission to high-level colleges, prosecutors say.

The businessman from Newport Beach, California, agreed to plead guilty in a federal court in Boston on Tuesday on charges of racketeering and obstruction of justice. As part of his guilty plea, Singer said he would pay at least $ 3.4 million to the federal government, reports the Boston Globe.

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On his website for The Key, Singer describes himself as a dedicated father and coach who understands the pressure on families to accept college education. The Key is called "the largest university coaching and consulting company in the country".

"As founder of The Key, I've spent the last 25 years helping students discover their passion for life and accompany them with their families through the complex maze of university admissions. The Key method, our coaches help unleash the full potential of your son or daughter, and put them on a journey to excel in life, "Singer told online, providing biographies of seven other" coaches. "

Andrew Lelling, Massachusetts District Attorney, reportedly said Singer's clients had paid "between $ 200,000 and $ 6.5 million" for his unique services.

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Parents of prospective students have conspired with a university entrance consultant to bypass the system and ensure that their students are admitted or have a better chance of being admitted to certain universities or colleges, including Yale, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, USC, Wake Forest, etc.

"According to the prosecution documents, Singer has facilitated the cheating of SAT and ACT exams for his clients by asking them to ask their children more time for university entrance exams, including by having them pretend to have learning difficulties in order to obtain the required knowledge. " medical documentation, "explained the US Department of Justice in an online statement.

"Singer would accept what parents want to do."

– Andrew Lelling

However, this was just one of the many ways Singer ensured that students were accepted into elite schools such as Yale, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, USC, Wake Forest, and so on.

"Singer would accept what parents want to do," said Lelling, adding that "it seems like schools are not involved."

Prosecutors said the consultant told parents that the program had worked successfully over 800 times.

Singer also served as CEO of the Key Worldwide Foundation (KWF), a non-profit organization he considered a charity. Corruption payments were disguised as donations to the KWF for up to $ 75,000 per SAT or ACT review, said the Justice Department, noting that many students had not realized that their parents had organized anything.

"It's a case where [the parents] They displayed their wealth, sparing no expense to trick the system so that they could ensure the success of their children with the best possible price, "said Joseph Bonavolonta of the FBI Boston Office at Tuesday's meeting. 39, a press conference.

A total of 50 people – including more than 30 parents and nine coaches – were indicted on Tuesday as part of the scheme.

Katherine Lam of Fox News, Travis Fedschun and The Assocaited Press contributed to this report.