IMG Academy in Bradenton is confirming that a former student mentor has lost his job. The firing happened shortly after his indictment in a national college admissions scam.
Mark Riddell has been charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and mail fraud for providing exam answers for students.
IMG communications director Danielle Cameron said Riddell was suspended immediately after his arrest in mid-March and terminated a week later. She said it appears as though he was working independently.
"Fortunately, we didn't have any students or parents at the academy that were pulled into this,” Cameron said, “and so Mark was actually, from what it appears to us, was working through that third party and not through the academy or using contacts at the academy."
Fifty people, including wealthy parents and coaches, have been charged in the scam. Riddell is scheduled to make his first appearance in court on Friday in Boston and is expected to plead guilty.
