As her Hollywood actress mother Lori Loughlin, who allegedly paid $500,000 in bribes to get her into the University of Southern California, flew from Vancouver to Los Angeles to face arrest for the charges, 19-year-old Olivia Jade Gianulli was partying in the Bahamas on a 216-foot yacht owned by the billionaire real estate developer who chairs the USC Board of Trustees, according to a report by TMZ .
The trustee board head, Rick Caruso, confirmed the story to the TMZ site, saying, “My daughter and a group of students left for spring break prior to the government’s announcement yesterday. Once we became aware of the investigation, the young woman decided it would be in her best interests to return home.”
Prosecutors allege that 54-year-old Loughlin and her fashion designer husband Mossimo Giannulli shelled out a half-million dollars in bribes to guarantee that their two daughters, Olivia Jade Giannulli and Isabella Rose Giannulli, would get into the university, according to The Associated Press , in part by having the two girls designated as athletic recruits for the USC crew team — even though neither Gianulli daughter had ever participated in the arduous and physically demanding sport of rowing.
On Wednesday, Loughlin appeared in court and was released after posting a $1 million bond, according to the entertainment industry news site Deadline.com .
Before the college admissions scandal, Olivia Jade Gianulli had already carved out a career as a popular YouTube “vlogger” and social media “influencer” who often flaunted her high-end lifestyle and endorsed products in her posts. In one post, she said that she did not “really care about school, as you guys all know,” but wanted to attend university for “the experience of like game days, partying,” as The Inquisitr reported.
Her self-professed casual attitude toward her studies, however, did not preclude her receiving an invitation to party for spring break aboard a super-luxury yacht owned by the head of USC’s trustee board, the TMZ report indicates.
The 60-year-old Caruso was elected to chair the USC Board of Trustees last year. His net worth is estimated at $4 billion by Forbes , amassed largely through his development of open-air shopping malls. He is perhaps best known as the builder of The Grove, a mall in Los Angeles reported to see 49,000 visitors per day — making it busier than the Disneyland theme park.
His yacht, Invictus, was valued at $100 million in 2013, according to the site Super Yacht Fans . The vessel can house 12 guests in six cabins, with eight more cabins to house the yacht’s 19 crew members, according to the site.
Olivia Jade Gianulli was no longer on board the yacht as of Wednesday afternoon, TMZ reported.