Lori Loughlin & Mossimo Giannulli Reportedly Claiming They Didn’t Know About Bribery
Lori Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, are allegedly claiming that they had no idea the money they gave to the college admissions scandal ring leader, Rick Singer, was being used for bribes.
According to TMZ, Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli have pleaded not guilty to mail and wire fraud, as well as money laundering, in the shocking college admissions scandal. The couple’s defense will allegedly be that they had no idea about the bribes used to get their daughters, Bella Giannulli and Olivia Jade, into the University of Southern California.
Sources tell the outlet that the actress and fashion designer are stating that they didn’t know that Singer would use the money they gave him to get the girls into college illegally, and although they were aware that he wanted photos of their daughters on rowing machines, they didn’t know what he would use them for.
The couple’s lawyers will now reportedly claim that they had no knowledge or intent to bribe anyone to get the girls into USC, but only that they used a “facilitator,” whom they knew got many students into college.
However, there could be one big problem with their defense. Giannulli, not Loughlin, reportedly sent at least $100,000 directly to the assistant athletic director, seemingly hurting their claims of not knowing about the bribes.
Actress Lori Loughlin and her husband, designer Mossimo Giannulli, plead not guilty to charges in connection with the college admissions scandal https://t.co/k0l7UZz1gJ pic.twitter.com/gvYlFFDxbM
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) April 15, 2019
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli were arrested last month after they were accused of paying around $500,000 to bribe college officials and coaches to have their daughters designated as rowing athletes in order to secure them spots at USC.
Meanwhile, sources tell Us Weekly that Loughlin’s friends don’t like Giannulli and that they believe he orchestrated the entire situation, which she is now tangled up in.
“Everyone feels bad for her. They think the situation was something concocted by her husband. Her friends don’t like him,” a source revealed.
Soon after Lori and Mossimo were arrested on the fraud charges, the actress was fired from all of her projects at The Hallmark Channel, which included movies for the network and the television series, When Calls The Heart.
Not long after, she was axed from the fifth and final season of Fuller House on Netflix, where she played fan favorite character, Aunt Becky.
Both Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli are now looking at up to 20 years in prison if they go to trial and are found guilty. Meanwhile, others arrested in the scandal have started to take plea deals in hopes of obtaining lighter sentences.
