Former Harvard fencing coach, Maryland businessman found not guilty on bribery charges

A Maryland businessman and a former Harvard fencing coach both were acquitted Wednesday on charges of conspiracy and bribery involving the recruitment of fencers at the university.

Businessman Jie Zhao had been accused of paying more than $1.5 million in bribes to then-coach Peter Brand in exchange for recruiting his sons as fencers at Harvard.

The defense argued that, while Mr. Zhao did give Mr. Brand money, it was a loan to a good friend in need, rather than anything untoward. Mr. Brand, upon inheriting money from his mother, paid back Mr. Zhao with interest.

The defense also argued that Mr. Zhao’s purchase of Mr. Brand’s Massachusetts home for nearly double the property’s assessed value was an investment.

Finally, the defense noted that Mr. Zhao’s two sons, Eric and Edward, were both exceptional student-athletes ranked in the top 20 nationwide in high school, and graduated Harvard with grade-point averages of 3.84 and 3.92, according to the Boston Globe.

Mr. Brand, who had been the fencing coach at Harvard since 1999, was fired by the university in 2019 for not disclosing the payments from Mr. Zhao.

“We are grateful to the jury for their service and for doing justice in this case,” Mr. Zhao’s attorney, Bill Weinreb, told The Associated Press. Mr. Brand’s lawyer, Douglas Brooks, told the AP that the verdict “exonerates Peter Brand, who is 100% innocent.”

U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Rachel Rollins told the AP that, while prosecutors fundamentally disagree, they respect the jury’s verdict.