Ex-Tutor Faces Fraud Charge

A former tutor who did more than 400 pieces of course work for Minnesota basketball players was charged Friday with a single federal felony count of financial aid fraud.

The charge was signed by Joshua Hochberg, the acting chief of the fraud section at the Justice Department, and Mark McConnell, an attorney with the fraud section who has been supervising the case.

Several newspapers and Minneapolis TV stations, citing unidentified sources close to the investigation, have reported the charge is part of a plea bargain in which Jan Gangelhoff agreed to testify against former basketball coach Clem Haskins and the program’s former academic advisor, Alonzo Newby. In exchange for her testimony, Gangelhoff would receive no jail time.

Gangelhoff and her attorney, Jim Lord, declined comment.

Gangelhoff is the first person charged with a criminal offense in the wake of the scandal. In the charge, she’s accused of “knowingly and willfully” committing fraud by “fraudulently preparing and submitting academic course work” for a basketball player, making him eligible to enroll at the university and enabling him to obtain a federally financed Pell Grant during the 1995-96 school year.

While the charge did not name the player, media reports on the investigation say he is Bobby Jackson, who now plays for the Sacramento Kings.

The amount of grant money in question is $2,900, WCCO-TV reported Friday night.

Gangelhoff, a former office manager of the university’s academic counseling unit, said she did the course work for as many as 20 players from 1993 until early 1998. She resigned in 1998 after university officials accused her of improperly helping a player with a paper.

She went public with her allegations in March 1999, sparking a university investigation that led to the ouster of Haskins and other athletic officials, as well as self-imposed sanctions by the university and an investigation by the NCAA. The NCAA’s decision on any additional sanctions is pending.

Tennis

David Sanguinetti of Italy added another upset victim to his advance in the President’s Cup ATP tournament at Tashkent, Uzbekistan, by beating Justin Gimelstob, 6-0, 5-7, 6-3. The victory moved Sanguinetti into the semifinals.

U.S. Open champion Marat Safin of Russia also reached the semifinals with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Jamie Delgado of Britain.

Safin today will play George Bastl of Switzerland, who eliminated Andrei Stoliarov of Russia, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Julian Boutter of France beat countryman Jerome Golmard, who quit in the second set because of stomach cramps while trailing, 6-1, 1-1.

Eighth-seeded Alex Calatrava of Spain became the only seeded player to advance to the semifinals of the Romanian Gelsor Open at Bucharest, Romania, and he didn’t have to play a complete match to do it.

Fernando Meligeni of Brazil quit in the second set because of illness with Calatrava leading, 6-3, 4-0.

Auto Racing

Kurt Busch, the leading rookie in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, will replace Chad Little behind the wheel of a Roush Racing Ford next week in Dover, Del. In another driver change, Morgan McClure Motorsports and Bobby Hamilton said they would be parting company at the end of this season.

Qualifying for Sunday’s Dura Lube 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway was rained out and will be held today. After two recent driver deaths on the track, a mandate by NASCAR will require the use of speed-limiting carburetor restrictor plates.

Although qualifying was rained out, the drivers did get a chance to practice with the plates, previously used only on the two fastest tracks on the Winston Cup circuit.

Tony Schumacher led top fuel qualifying in the NHRA’s Keystone Nationals, breaking the Maple Grove Raceway record with a top speed of 324.67 mph at Mohnton, Pa.

Names in the News

Soccer star Gheorghe Hagi of Romania was suspended for five European Cup games for his ejection this week in Galatasaray’s Champions Cup opener against AS Monaco.

Roberto Heras held the overall lead in the Tour of Spain, sticking with the main pack of cyclist in the 19th stage, won by Mariano Piccoli of Italy. Heras, a Spaniard, has led the standings for a week. With three days to go, he is 3 minutes 41 seconds ahead of countryman Angel Casero.

Kevin Gaines pleaded not guilty in Taylor, Mich., to a drunk-driving charge that contributed to his dismissal from the Michigan basketball team.

For the Record

Hot Corner--There were 51,000 killed, wounded or captured at the Battle of Gettysburg. The information was incorrect in Friday’s editions.

High school football--The last name of Wilmington Banning center Mike Wolfson was spelled incorrectly in a story that appeared Sept. 7.