Seven Long Island teens were busted today for their alleged roles in a widespread cheating ring that paid a college student thousands of dollars to impersonate students and take the SAT exam for them, authorities said.
Six students at Great Neck North High School are accused of paying Sam Eshaghoff, 19, of Great Neck, to take the college-entry test for them.
Eshaghoff, currently a student at Emory University who completed his freshman year at the University of Michigan and a 2010 Great Neck North graduate, accepted payments of between $1,500 and $2,500 per student, authorities said.
Eshaghoff was arrested this morning and charged with scheme to defraud, falsifying business records and criminal impersonation.
He faces up to four years in prison if convicted on those charges.
The six students who hired Eshaghoff were also busted today and face misdemeanor charges.
Prosecutors said the students’ names are not being made public due to their ages.
Eshaghoff and the six students will be arraigned later today in Hempstead.
The Nassau County DA’s Office is currently investigating whether similar SAT scams took place in at least two other high schools last year.
The DA is also looking into allegations Eshaghoff took the SAT exam for students at other high schools.
“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,” DA Kathleen Rice said. “These arrests should serve as a warning to those taking the SAT this Saturday that if you cheat, you can face serious criminal consequences. I want to thank the Great Neck School District for their invaluable assistance with this investigation.”
Investigators said the students registered to take the test at a different school where their faces would not be known to the proctors.
That’s when Eshaghoff showed up with an ID card bearing his photo and the paying student’s name on it. He also took the test at no charge for a female student, prosecutors said.
On at least one occasion, Rice said Eshaghoff flew back home from college to impersonate two students and took the SAT twice in one weekend.