Lori Loughlin indicted on money laundering charges in college admissions scam
16 parents face charges of conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering; Independent Women's Voice president Tammy Bruce weighs in.
Hallmark revealed that the series “When Calls the Heart” will return with Season 6 on May 5 after some retooling to remove embattled actress Lori Loughlin's character.
Hallmark previously confirmed to Fox News that it cut ties with Loughlin and fired her from the series after her role in the ongoing college admissions scandal came out.
"We are saddened by the recent news surrounding the college admissions allegations," a statement from Crown media reads. "We are no longer working with Lori Loughlin and have stopped development of all productions that air on the Crown Media Family Network channels involving Lori Loughlin, including 'Garage Sale Mysteries,' an independent third-party production."
LORI LOUGHLIN TURNED DOWN REALITY SHOW WITH DAUGHTERS A YEAR BEFORE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS SCANDAL
The network abruptly pulled “When Calls The Heart” from its schedule, leading many fans to wonder if it would ever return. In a surprising post on his Instagram, executive producer Brian Bird announced that the show will be back with a two-night premiere before resuming its regular Sunday night schedule.
“Thanks for sticking with us through this challenging time. As you now know… the show not only must go on, but will go on, starting Sunday night, May 5th and Monday night, May 6th,” he wrote.
Bird continued: “Life throws all of us painful curveballs, and the only way to survive is to walk right through them with courage, grace, a forgiving spirit, and most of all, hope. Many of you have wondered what the future holds for our cast and crew, and for the citizens of Hope Valley. Your care and concern means the world to us, and the best way we can thank you is to encourage you the way you encourage us because… Hope always lives here.”
Loughlin played Abigail, the mayor of Hope Valley. According to Entertainment Weekly, her character was edited out of the remainder of Season 6. The outlet reports that removing the 54-year-old actress from the show was not easy. Ultimately an entire episode was scrapped, meaning there will reportedly only be six more episodes this season rather than the planned seven.
LORI LOUGHLIN REPORTEDLY IN PANIC MODE AT POTENTIAL PRISON TIME FOR COLLEGE ADMISSIONS SCANDAL
Loughlin and her fashion designer husband, Mossimo Giannulli, were indicted on fraud and money laundering charges Tuesday in the multimillion-dollar college admissions cheating scam that has ensnared dozens of wealthy parents trying to get their kids into the nation's most prestigious colleges.
The "Fuller House" star and her husband, along with 14 other parents, were charged in Boston in a "second superseding indictment with conspiring to commit fraud and money laundering," the Department of Justice said in a statement to Fox News.
Loughlin and Giannulli were charged last month with conspiracy to commit mail fraud. The new indictment adds a money laundering charge for all 16 defendants.
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Loughlin and Giannulli are accused of paying $500,000 in bribes to get their daughters admitted to the University of Southern California as crew team recruits, even though neither of them played the sport.
Fox News’ Sasha Savitsky contributed to this report.
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