Former Partner in Willkie Farr’s Private Equity Practice Sentenced to Prison

Gordon Caplan, a former partner in Willkie Farr & Gallagher’s private equity practice, was sentenced to one month in federal prison for his role in the college admissions cheating scandal, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

Caplan paid $75,000 to participate in the “college entrance exam cheating scheme for his daughter,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts tweeted Thursday. He was the fourth parent sentenced in the scheme, the U.S. Attorney’s office said in the tweet.

A spokesperson for Willkie Farr declined to comment on Caplan. 

In May, Caplan, of Greenwich, Connecticut, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud in the college admissions case. In addition to his prison sentence, Caplan was fined $50,000 and has to perform 250 hours of community service, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Thursday.

Caplan is one of many parents accused in the college admissions scandal and among those with prominent roles in finance. In some instances, parents allegedly bribed athletic coaches to get their children into highly competitive schools, while others were accused of making payments under a fraudulent scheme that involved cheating on entrance exams.

[II Deep Dive: TPG Growth Founder Among Financiers Charged in College Bribery Scandal]

TPG Growth founder Bill McGlashan and Hercules Capital founder Manuel Henriquez were among the parents charged in the college admissions case. They no longer work for the investment firms.

A spokesperson for TPG said in March that the private equity firm terminated McGlashan after “reviewing the allegations of personal misconduct in the criminal complaint.” Hercules announced that same month that Henriquez stepped down as chairman and chief executive officer. While Henriquez initially hung onto a board seat at the business development company, Hercules no longer has any ties to him, the firm’s CEO Scott Bluestein told Institutional Investor late last month.

In April, McGlashan and Henriquez entered “not guilty” pleas, according to the website for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.