LOS ANGELES — A former University of Southern California water polo coach was found guilty Friday of accepting bribes to circumvent the university's admissions process by passing off applicants as promising athletic recruits.
Jovan Vavic, a legendary figure in his sport whom USC fired after his arrest in 2019, was convicted of bribery and fraud charges by a federal jury in Boston. Of 10 coaches and officials from seven elite universities accused of scheming with William "Rick" Singer, the admitted mastermind of a sprawling scam to get the children of wealthy clients into top-level schools, Vavic was the only one to take his case to trial.
In all, Vavic was the last among 56 parents, school officials and others charged in the scheme to either admit guilt or be convicted by a jury. One defendant, William Ferguson, a former volleyball coach at Wake Forest, reached a deal with prosecutors to resolve his case, while Robert Zangrillo, a Miami financier charged with conspiring with Singer to get his daughter into USC, was pardoned by former President Donald Trump.
