美国检方28日对15名中国学生提起诉讼，指控他们在美国大学入学考试(SAT)等考试中采用欺诈手段。目前这15名中国学生正面临法院质控，其中一人已经被捕，同时他们将面临巨额罚金甚至监禁。

美国一联邦大陪审团在起诉书中说，作弊者花钱雇佣替考者，涉及的考试类别包括SAT、GRE和托福，涉案地点集中在宾夕法尼亚州。总计15人在匹兹堡被起诉，包括作弊考生和替考者。起诉书公开了其中7男5女共12人的身份信息，年龄在19岁至26岁间，其中有10人在美国居住。

被捕者叫李碧元(音)，居住在波士顿，他帮助居住在匹兹堡的24岁中国同谋者佟寒(音)伪造了假护照，以便佟寒能替他参加GRE考试。如今他已经承认罪行，被判5年缓刑并立即离开美国。

2014年，李碧元他向约翰斯·霍普金斯大学、哥伦比亚大学、宾夕法尼亚大学、纽约大学、康奈尔大学、布朗大学和卡内基-梅隆大学研究生院提交了伪造的成绩。他协助安排了至少10次替考，获得了7本假护照。

而李碧元并不是个案。

和他一起的作弊团伙成员都是学生，他们花高达6000美元的佣金雇佣枪手，代替他们进入考场。作弊考生事先通过聊天软件传递用于伪造护照的个人信息、枪手照片等，伪造护照者而后通过邮寄或快递方式把假护照从中国寄到美国的作弊考生手中。然后，骗过考场管理人员，使考试机构错误认为替考者就是考生。

欺诈罪在美国可判高至20年监禁和25万美元罚金，伪造外国护照罪最高可判10年监禁和25万美元罚金，合谋罪最高可判5年监禁加25万美元。

检察机关没有公开这些学生通过欺诈方式就读的大学列表。检察机关认为，在这起案件中，大学属于受害者类别。

Chinese student Li Biyuan, who has been accused of participating in a cheating scheme on U.S. university entrance exams, pleaded guilty on Wednesday. Li was sentenced to a five-year probation and immediate deportation from the U.S., as reported by local media the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Li is the first of all 15 students in the university cheating case to plead guilty.

Li Biyuan, a 25-year-old graduate from Northeastern University in Boston, admitted two weeks ago that he offered an imposter a counterfeited passport manufactured in China and a payment of $6,000. The imposter later posed as Li to take the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Li expressed his regret for cheating in front of Judge Joy Flowers Conti and said his decision disgraced his family and ruined his chance to study in America.

The judge then released him to the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents for immediate deportation.

The judge said Li's five-year probation would be immediately applied when he re-enters the U.S..

Previously, US federal authorities also wanted to pose tougher punishment on Li to set him as an example in cracking down on students who attempt to cheat their ways into universities.

The lead of the test cheating case, 24-year-old Chinese defendant Han Tong, also pleaded guilty in the court to both hiring imposters to take entrance tests and taking entrance tests for others.

Han has been a student at the University of Pittsburgh since 2011 after gaining admission through cheating on an English exam himself.

Han and his Chinese accomplice identified as "Ada" worked as impostors themselves to take tests for other Chinese students seeking admission from American schools with fake passports, said the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Han hired five to seven associates to take 10 fraudulent tests, paying them $2000 for each test.

He also admitted to offering imposters fake passports manufactured in China, with the pictures of the imposters and the names and identification information of students supposed to be taking the test, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.

The U.S. federal authorities confiscated 7 fake passports from Han.

Han will remain free until he is set to be sentenced this November.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said Han's lawyer, who refused to make comments, told the judge that his client had completed three years of studies at the University of Pittsburg and was hoping to get his degree in Ohio State University before returning to China.

So far, U.S. federal persecutors haven't commented on the case.

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