UCLA athletic official quits amid claims of ‘inappropriate conduct’
A longtime UCLA athletics official resigned amid allegations that he “engaged in inappropriate conduct,” the university said in a statement released Tuesday to The Times.
UCLA Associate Athletic Director Michael Sondheimer resigned June 27 after being placed on administrative leave June 3, the statement said.
CBS 2 reported that Sondheimer “attempted to engage children in sexual chats” online.
Sondheimer graduated from UCLA in 1977 and spent at least 36 years as a UCLA athletic administrator, according to a biography posted on the UCLA Athletics website. For decades he was in charge of the department’s compliance with NCAA rules and UCLA guidelines on academic admissions and on-campus recruiting, the biography said.
Sondheimer was “involved in all aspects of the academic and admissions process for prospective student-athletes,” the biography said.
In its statement, the university said the allegations against Sondheimer “were unrelated to his job at UCLA and did not involve students or any other employees of the university. The university and its police department simultaneously began a full investigation, which is ongoing.”
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