David Sidoo speaks publicly for 1st time since serving U.S. prison sentence over college admissions scandal

David Sidoo, the Vancouver businessman and philanthropist who pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy for his role in the college admissions scandal that rocked the United States, spoke exclusively to CTV News Vancouver at a community event Wednesday evening.

Sidoo spent three months behind bars at the SeaTac Federal Detention Centre south of Seattle and finished his sentence just before Christmas 2020.

In a Boston courtroom in March 2019, Sidoo initially pleaded not guilty to wire and mail fraud conspiracy charges, which carry a maximum of 20 years in prison.

But a year later, in March of 2020, he changed his plea to guilty and was eventually sentenced to 90 days in prison and ordered to pay a $250,000 fine.

Sidoo admitted he had paid a Harvard graduate $200,000 to write college entrance exams for his two sons.

Both would go on to attend post-secondary school in the United States, with one graduating from University of California, Berkeley and the other from the University of Southern California.

Sidoo, a former CFL player, had his name removed from the football field at University of British Columbia and was stripped of his Order of British Columbia.

He also resigned from his positions on the boards of several companies.

“The only thing I can say is people make mistakes. We all take turns making them. Some are big and some are small. You move on from it,” he said when asked if he had any regrets about his crimes.

CTV News also asked Sidoo about a large Halloween party that took place at his $35-million Point Grey mansion in October 2021.

Hundreds of people attended the bash and BC Emergency Health Services says it had to send five ambulances to the residence around 1:30 a.m. to treat a number of people in medical distress after overdosing on illicit drugs.

Three people were taken to hospital for further treatment before being released a few hours later.

BCEHS says paramedics returned to the party at about 3:40 a.m. for a call about a patient who had consumed too much alcohol.

Vancouver police confirm officers attended the initial call with multiple ambulances in order to conduct crowd control while paramedics treated the patients.

Videos of the party posted online show hundreds of people dancing and drinking in a large tent and around the pool deck while DJs perform with professional sound and lighting systems.

Sidoo admits he was at the party but denies being the host of the party, saying he allowed a beverage company to use his property for the event that night.

"I think everything was going great until a couple people got sick a little bit,” he said. “Thankfully, they were OK when they came to the hospital and came home, very quickly."