Mark Riddell, fired by IMG Academy in April after he was charged in the college entrance scandal, has reportedly been accused of withholding more than $13,000 from an attorney who represented him for about three months this year, according to WFTS Tampa Bay.
Riddell, 36, hired attorney Ben Stechschulte in February when he was accused of accepting bribes to take the SAT or ACT for students or change their already-completed tests to help them get into better colleges, according to WFTS.
The two reportedly agreed on a flat fee of $30,000 for Stechschulte’s representation.
Stechschulte filed a motion in May to withdraw as Riddell’s attorney. WFTS reported the two had “a differing opinion on how to move forward.”
Earlier this month, Stechschulte filed a complaint alleging Riddell has only paid $16,625 of the initial $30,000 owed, leaving $13,375 to go with about $400 in “related transportation costs and other defense costs,” according to WFTS.
Riddell, who served as the IMG Academy college entrance exam director, was accused of giving illegal help to students on the SAT and ACT exams from 2012 until February to help them get into better colleges, according to NBC News.
He was paid $10,000 for each test he took or changed the answers to, according to the outlets. Prosecutors are aiming to recover about $450,000 from Riddell.
The 2004 Harvard graduate was one of 50 people who have been charged in the college admissions scandal in which parents paid bribes to falsify their kids’ college applications, according to Insider.
Riddell was pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to WFTS Tampa Bay.
IMG Academy is one of the elite athletic high school institutions in the country.
This past school year, the boys basketball team was named National Champions after winning the GEICO Nationals, the baseball team was named the No. 1 team in the country with six players drafted to the MLB, and the football team finished No. 5 in the Super 25.
