KEY POINTS

  • Karen Littlefair is expected to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud
  • Littlefair allegedly paid $9,000 for a "The Key" employee to take online courses in behalf of her son
  • The Newport Beach, California resident will be sentenced to four months in prison, one year of supervised release and to pay a fine of $9,500 in restitution

A California mother became the latest parent to be plead guilty in the college admissions scandal where parents availed of a service for their children to be admitted to some of the most elite schools in the country.

57-year-old Karen Littlefair will plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud after she allegedly paid $9,000 for an employee of William “Rick” Singer's company, The Edge College & Career Network, to take online classes in behalf of her son, according to a statement by the United States Attorney's Office District of Massachusetts.

In summer of 2017, “The Key” employee took two classes in the guise of Littlefair's son, said CBS News, citing court documents. The employee then began to take a third class “in or around” fall of the same year.

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Ohio pastor found guilty of grooming a teen for sex. This illustration picture taken on March 25, 2019 shows piles of documents, files and chairs inside an audience room of the Paris courthouse. THOMAS SAMSON/AFP/Getty Images

On October 15, however, Littlefair emailed Singer's employee and said that the class are requiring their students to have a video conference with their professor. But because her son would be out of the country, Littlefair wrote that someone should pretend to be her son, but that person should be “highly briefed” by “The Key” employee.

The employee agreed to find a “fellow male colleague” to stand in as Littlefair's son during the video conferences, it added.

Court documents likewise pointed that in January 2018, Littlefair told Singer that she would be needing of his services “for one more course.” Again, the employee took a course at Arizona State University and transferred those credits to Georgetown.

Littlefair is the latest to be charged as a result of Operation Varsity Blues of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), said NBC News.

Actresses Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman were also charged, with the latter pleading guilty to mail fraud and honest services fraud in May, the outlet added.

As per the terms of the plea agreement, Littlefair, who hails from Newport Beach, California, will be sentenced to four months in prison, one year of supervised release and to pay a fine of $9,500 in restitution instead of the maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a hefty $250,000 fine.

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