Lori Loughlin: ‘Full House’ Star Charged With Money Laundering Alongside Husband

Lori Loughlin’s legal affairs just got worse. The Fuller House actress and husband Mossimo Giannulli were indicted Tuesday on an additional charge of money laundering in addition to the original charges against them.

TMZ reports that because Loughlin, 54, did not accept a plea deal from prosecutors, the U.S. Attorney went to a federal grand jury for an indictment, which added the money laundering charge — which ultimately increases the amount of time behind bars that she and fashion designer husband Giannulli could be sentenced to. They are already facing charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud.

According to the news outlet, the U.S. Attorney said Loughlin, Giannulli and 14 others will now be charged with the additional specific charge of “conspiring to launder the bribes and other payment in furtherance of the fraud by funneling them through [Rick] Singer’s purported charity and his for-profit corporation.”

The charge alone carries a maximum 20-year sentence.

Earlier on Tuesday, it was reported that Loughlin and Giannulli could face an additional money laundering charge in addition to a sentencing of a minimum of two years in prison after they did not take the plea deal that Felicity Huffman and 12 other parents and one coach took on Monday.

All the defendants charged in the sweeping indictment were reportedly offered individual plea deals, with mandatory prison time recommendations varying on the severity of their alleged offenses.

Loughlin and Giannulli allegedly paid $500,000 to bribe USC’s crew coach, which reportedly raises the minimum sentence in a plea deal to a range of two to two and a half years, according to TMZ.

Huffman, who pleaded guilty on Monday to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud, could receive as little as four to 10 months in prison, as would be suggested by the prosecutor thanks to the plea deal. However, she still reserves the right to argue that the range should be zero to six months. The details will reportedly be worked out during sentencing, as the judge will have the ultimate say following the prosecutors’ initial recommendations.

Prosecutors also demand that Huffman pay a $20,000 fine, plus restitution and one year of probation.

Huffman, 56, paid Rick Singer $15,000 to rig her daughter’s SAT test, giving the girl twice the amount of time as normal to complete the exam. The proctor also reportedly corrected her answers afterward.

In a statement, Huffman accepted responsibility for her actions and apologized, saying that her daughter was not aware of the scheme.

“I am pleading guilty to the charge brought against me by the United States Attorney’s Office. I am in full acceptance of my guilt, and with deep regret and shame over what I have done, I accept full responsibility for my actions and will accept the consequences that stem from those actions,” Huffman said in her statement. “I am ashamed of the pain I have caused my daughter, my family, my friends, my colleagues and the educational community.”

“I want to apologize to them and, especially, I want to apologize to the students who work hard every day to get into college, and to their parents who make tremendous sacrifices to support their children and do so honestly,” she went on.

“My daughter knew absolutely nothing about my actions, and in my misguided and profoundly wrong way, I have betrayed her,” the actress said. “This transgression toward her and the public I will carry for the rest of my life. My desire to help my daughter is no excuse to break the law or engage in dishonesty.”