Tax Fraud

Shakira Forced To Pay Even More Money From Tax Fraud Investigation

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Shakira has been dealing with the fallout from an investigation into her taxes for years now. She may have thought it was over last week when she appeared in court to settle the criminal investigation into her tax fraud. She paid nearly $27 million in order to get a lighter sentence after pleading guilty to tax fraud. Now, according to TMZ, she’s now being forced to pay even more to put the whole ordeal behind her.

While they can’t identify exactly why, Shakira has put forth an extra $7.2 million. TMZ speculates that it could either be a new additional settlement agreement or a bond payment of sorts. That would bring the total amount she’s paid to escape her tax burden at around $34 million. When the investigation first emerged last year Shakira was facing an 8-year prison sentence resulting from the charges against her. The allegations center around a specific period from 2012 to 2014. During that time she’s accused of avoiding paying millions in owed taxes. Check out the full story below.

Read More: What Is Shakira’s Best-Selling Album?

Shakira Paying Even More In Tax Settlement

In the wake of the news of the investigation and her breakup with Gerard Pique, Shakira reportedly tried to leave Spain. Reports said that she was trying to settle in Miami. It ultimately didn’t help her avoid the penalties she was facing back home. The report allegedly came from close friends. They claimed they were trying to get her to make the move to Florida at the time. Though the primary motivation seems now to have had more to do with putting separation between her and Pique more than anything else.

Earlier this year the legendary singer got some jabs in at her ex and his new girlfriend. She threw some shade at Pique during Billboard’s Latin Women in Music event. That came just a few months after having some harsh words for his new girl. She’s been tied to numerous stars in the months since though nothing seems to have evolved beyond rumors yet. What do you think of Shakira being forced to pay an extra $7 million on top of the original $27 million settlement? Let us know in the comment section below.

Read More: Shakira & Gerard Piqué Announce Breakup After 11 Years Together

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The post Shakira Forced To Pay Even More Money From Tax Fraud Investigation appeared first on HotNewHipHop.

Detroit Rapper Crème Serving Prison Time For Stealing Millions Via Tax Fraud

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Detroit artist Crème of the rap duo Deuces Wild is serving time in prison after stealing millions through tax fraud. Moreover, a judge sentenced her to four and a half years behind bars for a tax fraud scheme that involved state agencies and the IRS. Also, they ordered Crème, real name Sameerah Marrell, to pay almost $8 million in restitution. Overall, the rapper stole $8.5 million through a tax fraud scheme, effective from 2014 to the early months of 2022.

Furthermore, the Detroit area artist pleaded guilty to wire fraud, mail fraud, and committing an offense while on bond in January. However, she avoided authorities by refusing to attend a guilty plea hearing in October of 2022. Still, her failure to comply didn’t last long, as officials caught her in Memphis back in December of 2022. Through Crème’s fraudulent system, she and her accomplices targeted both state agencies and the wider Internal Revenue Service. Moreover, the 42-year-old and complicit colleagues filed over 120 false income tax returns for trusts and estates. While this was to try to claim over $13 million from the IRS, the buck didn’t stop there. In addition, they falsified state income tax returns to try to claim over $14 million from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland and Minnesota.

Crème Caught For Tax Fraud

“Ms. Marrell committed an astonishing amount of fraud against federal and state agencies,” the IRS said in a press release from official Charles Miller. “She also proved herself incorrigible, continuing her scams even after her initial arrest. We hope that today’s sentence will deter both Ms. Marrell and anyone else who seeks to steal public funds for private gain.”

While Crème launched an insane plan with a broad scope, all roads led to her eventual arrest given the staggering amount of fraud. Moreover, she must serve three years on supervised release after she completes her prison sentence. Meanwhile, she actually caught at least a bit of neutral news from the sentence. For example, the court slightly reduced her restitution based on cars, money, and jewelry seized by the government during the investigation. At least it’s not cash upfront. Regardless, come back to HNHH for more wild stories and occurrences in the rap game.

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Donald Trump Ordered To Pay $1.6 Million In Tax Fraud Case

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Donald Trump is evidently no stranger to controversies or legal battles. The 76-year-old is gearing up to make another run at Presidency in 2024. However, he’s found himself in yet another criminal case.

On Friday (January 13), a New York judge ordered two of his companies to pay up in a criminal tax fraud case. Although the payment is only $1.6 million, this is the maximum that state rules allow.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump arrives on stage to speak during an event at his Mar-a-Lago home on November 15, 2022 in Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Furthermore, Ilya Marritz, who was covering the trial for NPR, says it’s really not a lot of money for these crimes.

“At trial, prosecutors showed that executives working for Trump engaged in a wide variety of maneuvers to evade local, state and federal taxes over more than a decade. And many of those tricks also benefited the Trump business. One executive got an apartment and cars and private school tuition, all undeclared, off the books. That meant Trump didn’t have to raise that executive’s wages for many years, and the Trump business also skirted payroll and Medicare taxes,” he says.

The former President and his legal team say they are preparing to appeal the case’s verdict.

Of course, Trump officially left office in 2021, following President Joe Biden‘s victory in the 2020 election. However, he initially fought against his loss, claiming he had in fact won. He subsequently filed lawsuits alleging that election fraud took place.

Regardless, the new conviction will likely not impact his hopeful run of becoming President again. “That’s equivalent to about $25 to Donald Trump. He probably spends more at McDonalds,” says political commentator, Scottie Hughes in response to the verdict.

What do you think about the ordered payment? Comment your thoughts down below. Finally, make sure you stay tuned to HNHH for all of the latest updates and news.

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Trump Organization Found Guilty Of All Counts Of Tax Fraud

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A Manhattan jury officially handed down a guilty verdict in the Trump Organization’s trial surrounding allegations of tax fraud. According to CNN, the court found Trump Corp. and Trump Payroll Corp. guilty of a 15-year tax scheme. They were accused of failing to accurately report and pay taxes on payments to the top executives of the company. The jury found Trump Org. guilty of criminal conduct and criminal tax fraud.

Authorities did not charge Trump or his family in the case. However, authorities mentioned the former president a few times. They believed that Trump had direct connection to issuing benefits. Prosecutors, specifically, focused on personal expenses, car leases, and apartments funded by the company. However, the prosecutor, Joshua Steinglass, argued that Trump played a significant role in sancitioning tax fraud.

“This whole narrative that Donald Trump is blissfully ignorant is just not true,” Steinglass said.

At this point, the company could face paying nearly $1.61M in fines. The Trump Org. will face sentencing in mid-January, but it likely won’t impact the business itself. Trump Organization won’t dissolve under New York State law. On the other hand, a felony conviction would certainly affect the Trump Organization’s ability to do business, receive loans, and land contracts.

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 09: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) presides over a meeting about immigration with Republican and Democrat members of Congress in the Cabinet Room at the White House January 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. In addition to seeking bipartisan solutions to immigration reform, Trump advocated for the reintroduction of earmarks as a way to break the legislative stalemate in Congress. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

“This was a case about greed and cheating,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said. “The Trump Corporation and the Trump Payroll Corporation got away with a scheme that awarded high-level executives with lavish perks and compensation while intentionally concealing the benefits from the taxing authorities to avoid paying taxes. Today’s verdict holds these Trump companies accountable for their long-running criminal scheme.”

Allen Weisselberg, an employee of the company that’s on paid leave, testified in court that he should’ve paid taxes on compensation, which amounted to nearly $200K annually.

We’ll keep you posted on any response from Trump or his reps.

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