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- Yusi Zhao shared a video in 2017 in which she said she got into Stanford University through her "own hard work," according to a translation from the New York Times.
- Zhao’s family were named as the college admissions scandal‘s largest clients last week.
- A source familiar with the case told the Los Angeles Times that Zhao’s family paid $6.5 million to ensure her admission into Stanford.
- Her family said through a lawyer last week that Zhao was a "victim," and they thought the $6.5 million was a donation to the school.
- Visit INSIDER’s homepage for more stories.
The woman whose parents reportedly paid $6.5 million in the college admissions scandal celebrated her admission to Stanford University in 2017 by saying she got in because of "hard work," not because of her rich parents.
In a video translated by the New York Times, Yusi Zhao said: "I tested into Stanford through my own hard work."
"Some people think, ‘Didn’t you get into Stanford because your family is rich?’" she, who also goes by Molly, said in the video, adding that admissions officers "have no idea who you are."
Zhao and her family were named to the Los Angeles Times as the college admissions scandal’s biggest client by a source familiar with the case.
The source told the LA Times that Zhao’s family, who live in Beijing, were introduced to the scheme’s ringleader, William "Rick" Singer, through a Morgan Stanley financial adviser.
Zhao’s father is Tao Zhao, the chairman and co-founder of Shandong Buchang, a multibillion-dollar pharmaceutical company based in China, the Stanford Daily reported.
To ensure Zhao’s admission into the school, her family paid Singer to have her recruited as part of Stanford’s sailing team, despite not playing the sport, the source told the LA Times.
A month after Zhao was admitted into the school, her family donated $6.5 million to Singer’s charity, which prosecutors say was a front for the admissions scheme.
Zhao’s mother said through the family lawyer last week that they were tricked into believing the $6.5 million they paid to Singer was a donation to Stanford.
"Mrs. Zhao has come to realize she has been misled, her generosity has been taken advantage of and her daughter has fallen victim to the scam," attorney William Law said, adding that Mrs. Zhao is "shocked and deeply disturbed."
Law said the family thought the $6.5 million payment was made "in the same nature" as donations that wealthy families are known for making at universities.
No one has in Zhao’s family has been charged as part of the scandal. Prosecutors told INSIDER last week that the investigation is still ongoing and more defendants could be charged.
Stanford announced in March that it had rescinded the admission of a student connected to the college admissions scandal. No Molly Zhao or Yusi Zhao can be found in Stanford’s public student directory.
- Read more:
- People are mocking an old USC crew recruitment poster that said experience isn’t necessary after the team was caught up in the college admissions scandal
- A Yale women’s soccer player says behind the college admissions scandal is a decade of abuses of power and sexist behavior in the program
- The father who reportedly paid $6.5 million in the college admissions scandal has been identified as the co-founder of a multibillion-dollar pharmaceutical company in China
- Prosecutors say even more people could be charged in the college admissions scandal, and parents are scared
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Source: Business Insider – kmclaughlin@businessinsider.com (Kelly McLaughlin)