College Admissions Scam: Del Mar Executive Gets 6 Months in Prison for Paying $450K to Get Kids Into USC

A statue of the school mascot, the Trojan, stands on the campus of the University of Southern California (USC) on March 6, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. (Credit: David McNew/Getty Images)

by: Associated Press

Posted: Nov 13, 2019 / 02:53 PM PST

Updated: Nov 13, 2019 / 02:53 PM PST

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A former Del Mar insurance executive has been sentenced to six months in prison for paying $450,000 to get his son and daughter admitted to the University of Southern California as fake athletic recruits.

Toby MacFarlane was sentenced in Boston’s federal court Wednesday after pleading guilty to a single count of fraud and conspiracy in June. His prison sentence is the longest in the case so far.

Authorities say MacFarlane paid $200,000 to get his daughter into USC as a fake soccer star in 2014, and then paid $250,000 to get his son admitted as a fake basketball recruit in 2017.

Prosecutors requested a year in prison. The 56-year-old from Del Mar, California, has apologized and said he wrongly agreed to participate in the scheme as his marriage was falling apart.