Hiu Kit David Chong

Hiu Kit David Chong admitted in his April plea agreement that he falsified applicants’ admission packets with doctored college transcripts, phony letters of recommendation and fraudulent personal statements. Chong, a 36-year-old Arcadia resident, agreed to plead guilty by video conference to a single wire fraud count, a felony carrying a sentence of up to 20 years behind bars. Chong, who was assistant director of USC’s Office of Graduate Admissions from September 2008 to March 2016, told Chinese nationals he could assist them in obtaining admission into a graduate degree program at the university, according to his plea agreement. He furthered the scheme by operating a now-defunct Monterey Park academic consulting company. From February 2015 to December 2018, Chong solicited and received payments — ranging from $8,000 to $12,000 — from unqualified international students or from others who were acting on behalf of the unqualified students. Chong concealed these actions from the university and continued engaging in them for two and a half years after he left USC, according to the university.