Ex-UCLA Coach Jorge Salcedo Pleads Guilty to Taking Bribes in Admissions Scandal

Former UCLA Bruins men's soccer coach and MLS player Jorge Salcedo agreed to plead guilty Tuesday to one count of conspiracy to commit racketeering as part of the nationwide college admissions scandal.

Joey Garrison of USA Today reported the news, noting the coach agreed to the plea deal after he said he was innocent for more than a year. 

Salcedo, who was the men's soccer coach for the Pac-12 program from 2004 to 2019, made a deal with federal prosecutors. The racketeering charge comes for accepting $200,000 in bribes to help make sure two students were accepted at the school as fake soccer recruits.

"Prosecutors recommended Salcedo, 47, receive a sentence at the 'low end' of sentencing guidelines that range from 24 to 30 months in prison, one year of supervised release, forfeiture totaling $200,000, an unspecified amount of restitution and a fine," Garrison wrote.

According to prosecutors, Salcedo received $100,000 on two different occasions.

The first happened in 2016 when he worked with Rick Singer, described by Garrison as "the scheme's mastermind," and former USC women's soccer coach Ali Khosroshahin to designate a prospective student as a soccer recruit so she could be accepted.

The second happened in 2018 when he worked with Singer and Khosroshahin to "recruit" someone who did not even play soccer competitively so he could be accepted.

Salcedo won three NCAA championships as a player for the Bruins from 1990 to 1993 and played professionally in the Mexican Soccer League and Major League Soccer. He played for the LA Galaxy, Columbus Crew, Chicago Fire and Tampa Bay Mutiny during an MLS career that lasted from 1996 through 2000.

He resigned as the UCLA men's soccer coach in March 2019 following his indictment.