On February 27th, 2020, Berkowitz filed a motion to have his clients’ trial date postponed, due to new new evidence. Berkowitz alleged that there is “exonerating” information about the couple, who have been charged with bribery. According to the lawer, Singer was not been truthful with his clients because he was given orders by the FBI to lie.
Berkowitz said, “Singer told agents working on the case the exact information we have been seeking in discovery, and those agents attempted to bully him into lying and saying something different. This belated discovery, which should have been produced no later than 30 days after indictment, is devastating to the government’s case.”
This new information came from the notes personally written by Singer. Instructed by the FBI, Singer recorded his phone calls with Loughlin and Giannulli, so that they would make up “inculpatory statements” to later be used against them.
Singer allegedly wrote in his notes that the FBI pressured him to lie, “They continue to ask me to tell a fib and not restate what I told my clients as to where their money was going — to the program not the coach and that it was a donation and they want it to be a payment.”
Berkowitz argued that these written notes are crucial in exonerating his clients. “Singer’s notes indicate that FBI agents yelled at him and instructed him to lie by saying that he told his clients who participated in the in the alleged ‘side door’ scheme that their payments were bribes, rather than legitimate donations that went to the schools.”
Loughlin and Giannulli allegedly paid $500,000 to admissions consultant Singer. After Singer was paid, Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose were accepted as recruits to the crew team at the University of Southern California. In addition to charges of money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, Loughlin and Giannulli were each handed a federal charge; one count of conspiracy for committing federal programs bribery on October 22, 2019.
Loughlin and Giannulli have pleaded not guilty to all charges. They could still possibly face jail time if convicted.
