'Chrisley Knows Best' Stars Todd And Julie Chrisley Indicted On Tax Evasion And Fraud Charges
If convicted, they're looking at 30 years behind bars!
USA Networks Chrisley Knows Best star Todd Chrisley knows a thing or two about being messy. But, in this latest announcement, he just might have outdone himself with the messiness, since he and his wife might be going to prison for more than 30 years! So what crimes did Todd and Julie Chrisley commit?
Let's look at what we know about this latest escandalo to rock the Chrisley family.
1. Tax evasion is just one of the many charges he's been slammed with.
According to NBC News, Todd and Julie Chrisley are looking down the barrel of 12 different charges. The counts, which were handed down by a federal grand jury in Atlanta, GA, range from wire fraud to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and even include a charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The family's accountant, Peter Tarantino, was also charged with a series of federal indictments.
2. Todd and Julie Chrisley tried to get ahead of the announcement by making a huge Instagram post.
"There’s been a cloud hanging over Julie and me and our entire family for the past seven years. It all started back in 2012, when we discovered that a trusted employee of ours had been stealing from us big time,” the USA Network star, who’s also a real estate investor, began his public message that was shared to Instagram on Aug. 12. Todd went on to allege that this former employee created “phony documents” and forged signatures before he was fired," reported Hollywood Life.
Of course, why Todd and Julie Chrisley are taking this ridiculous stance — that a former employee not only forged documents, he did so with such great skill that he was able to trick the FBI into framing the Chrisleys — is a mystery.
3. They tried to sell their mansion to avoid the scandal.
According to Radar Online, the Chrisleys went so far as to put their Tennessee mansion on the market to avoid the tax scandal. The mansion, which was listed for $4.9 million, didn't sell. But the outlet also reports that the couple is trying to sell the mansion — which they only bought 4 months ago — because they "need the cash."
4. This isn't the first time that Todd and Julie Chrisley have been investigated for tax fraud.
According to Fox News, this isn't the first time that the reality TV couple has been investigated for playing loose and fast with the tax laws of the United States.
"In 2017, Todd was being investigated over allegations of tax evasion and making claims of legal residency in Florida, even though the family lives in Georgia. The report alleged that Chrisley never filed Georgia income taxes, claiming on both his tax forms and a bankruptcy filing that he lived in Florida. Todd filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2012, listing $4.2 million in assets and $49.4 million in debts," reported the outlet.
5. Despite all evidence to the contrary, Todd Chrisley insists he's innocent.
“Anyway, when all is said and done, we trust in God and God says to us in Jeremiah 51:36, ‘I will defend you. I will be your lawyer. I will plead your case.’ We know that if and when this goes to court, the truth will prevail and the charges against us will be exposed for the outrageous lies they are,” he wrote, according to The New York Post.
6. If convicted, Todd and Julie Chrisley will face up to 30 years behind bars.
The Federal government doesn't play when it comes to their coins. If Todd and Julie Chrisley are convicted of all the charges against them, they could face up to 30 years in prison, according to Yahoo.
"Officials claim that "throughout the conspiracy," Todd and Julie knowingly went on lavish spending sprees, dropping thousands of dollars at electronic stores, luxury retail stores and other purchases but claimed they did not have enough cash to pay off their outstanding tax debt. They also allege Julie falsified financial documents by physically cutting and gluing figures from different documents," they wrote.
Well...yikes.
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more. She is also the author of The Uprising series. For more information about Bernadette Giacomazzo, click here.