Lori Loughlin among parents hit with new charges in admissions scam

Actress Lori Loughlin and several other parents were hit with additional charges in the college cheating scandal on Tuesday. The U.S. Attorney’s office said Loughlin, her husband and nine others are now accused of conspiring to commit federal program bribery, CBS Boston reported.

Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, are now accused of bribing employees at the University of Southern California to get their children admitted. The additional bribery charge carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Loughlin and Giannulli had already pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Another defendant, John Wilson, is now charged with two counts of substantive federal programs bribery. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said he tried to use bribes to get his children into Harvard and Stanford universities.

Actress Felicity Huffman started serving her two-week sentence last week for her role in the admissions scam. She pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges and said in an apology that she’s “deeply ashamed” of her actions.