BOSTON – A California man was sentenced today for using fraud and bribery to facilitate his child’s acceptance to Georgetown University.
Peter Dameris, 60, of Pacific Palisades, Calif., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns to one day in prison (deemed served), three years of supervised release with 12 months of home confinement, and ordered to pay a fine of $95,000. In June 2020, Dameris pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud.
Dameris agreed with William “Rick” Singer to pay an amount, ultimately totaling $300,000, to Singer’s purported charity, the Key Worldwide Foundation (KWF), knowing that the money would be used to facilitate Dameris’s son’s purported recruitment to Georgetown University as a tennis player, even though he did not play tennis competitively.
Singer previously pleaded guilty and is cooperating with the government’s investigation.
Dameris is the 23rd parent to be sentenced in this case.
Case information, including the status of each defendant, charging documents and plea agreements are available here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/investigations-college-admissions-and-testing-bribery-scheme.
United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Joleen Simpson, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston; and Mark Deckett, Resident Agent in Charge of the Department of Education, Office of Inspector General made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric S. Rosen, Justin D. O’Connell, Leslie A. Wright, Kristen A. Kearney, Stephen E. Frank and Karin M. Bell of Lelling’s Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the court documents are allegations and the remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.