A wealthy Maryland businessman bought the run-down home of Harvard's fencing coach for well above its value, bankrolled the renovation of his $1 million condo and helped pay the coach's bills in a scheme to secure coveted spots for his sons at the elite university, a federal prosecutor told jurors on Monday.
Peter Brand, who was fired from Harvard in 2019, “gave into corruption” amid personal financial struggles to accept more than $1.5 million in bribes from Jie “Jack” Zhao in exchange for recruiting Zhao's two sons to the fencing team, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ian Stearns said as the two men went on trial in Boston's federal court.
