Menlo Park Mother Pleads Guilty In College Admissions Scheme

MENLO PARK (CBS SF) - A Menlo Park mother pleaded guilty Friday in federal court in Boston to a fraud conspiracy in which she admitted paying $15,000 for cheating on a college entrance exam for her son.

Marjorie Klapper, 50, the co-owner of a jewelry business, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani to one count of conspiring to commit mail fraud and honest services fraud. She will be sentenced on Oct.  16.

Klapper admitted in a plea agreement that she paid $15,000 to a fraudulent charity run by college consultant William Singer to have her son's score on the ACT exam improved by a corrupt proctor in 2017.

Her son was also falsely identified as both black and Hispanic on his college application, according to the Wall Street Journal.

According to the terms of the plea agreement, the government will recommend a sentence at the low end of the Guidelines sentencing range for Klapper -- one year of supervised release, a fine of $20,000, restitution and forfeiture.

Jane Buckingham, 50, of Beverly Hills and Robert Flaxman, 62, of Laguna Beach also pleaded guilty Friday, bringing to 13 the total number of parents convicted in a college admissions scheme. One other will plead guilty in June, according to court documents.

Buckingham acknowledged agreeing to pay Rick Singer $50,000 to participate in the college entrance exam cheating scheme for her son. According to the terms of the plea agreement, the government will recommend a sentence at the low end of the Guidelines sentencing range -- one year of supervised release, a fine of $40,000, restitution and forfeiture.

Flaxman acknowledged agreeing to pay Singer $75,000 to participate in the college entrance exam cheating scheme for his daughter. According to the terms of the plea agreement, the government will recommend a sentence at the low end of the Guidelines sentencing range -- one year of supervised release, a fine of $40,000, restitution and forfeiture.

Nineteen other parents, including actress Lori Loughlin, face a grand jury indictment that includes charges of money laundering conspiracy as well as fraud conspiracy.

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