Seven Long Island teens were busted for running an SAT cheating ring in which a brainy college whiz-kid charged thousands of dollars to ace the exam for the others. Hit the jump to read the rest of the story.
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Sam Eshaghoff, 19, a sophomore at Emory University, got between $1,500 and $2,500 a pop from six current and former Great Neck North high school students for taking the exam in their place, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said Tuesday.
Eshaghoff, a 2010 Great Neck alum, was apparently worth the money. Out of a possible 2400, he scored between 2220 and 2140 on the tests.
Eshaghoff was arraigned on charges of scheming to defraud, criminal impersonation and falsifying business records.
The other six face misdemeanor charges. They were not identified because of their ages.
Prosecutors slammed the crew for scamming honest, hard-working kids out of competitive college slots.
“Colleges look for the best and brightest students, yet these six defendants tried to cheat the system and may have kept honest and qualified students from getting into their dream school,” Rice said.
In the scam, each of the six students signed up to take the test away from Great Neck high so they wouldn’t be recognized by proctors, Rice said.
Eshaghoff then used phony New York driver’s licenses – with his clients’ names but his photo – to slip past monitors at the test-taking sites.
He allegedly took the test for one girl, but waived his hefty fee for her.
School administrators caught wind of the scam through rumors earlier this year.
They nabbed the six cheats after noticing their SAT scores were considerably higher than their grade point averages.
A handwriting analysis traced the tests to Eshaghoff, prosecutors said.
Eshagoff’s bond was set at $1,000. He faces four years in prison if convicted. His lawyer, Matin Emouna, said his client is not guilty.
Prosecutors were also reportedly looking into possible scams at two other Nassau County schools, as well as rumors that Eshaghoff took the SAT for other teens.
The Great Neck School District released a statement saying it “does not tolerate cheating” and was cooperating with investigators.
