Wesley Snipes Busted For Tax Evasion
Well, I didn't see this one coming. I thought, like so many celebs, he'd get a slap on the wrist, but actor Wesley Snipes is facing three years in the pokey for tax evasion despite many famous friends attempting to intervene on his behalf:
The Blade star, 45, was sentenced Thursday to three years behind bars as his punishment for failing to file his tax returns, U.S. District Judge William Terrell Hodges announced in an Ocala, Fla., courtroom.Continued on the next pageThe actor sat stone-faced – and some people in the courtroom gasped – when the sentence was read. "I'm very sorry for my mistakes and errors. I apologize to my family, the court and the community," Snipes said as his wife looked on. "I've asked the court to show me mercy and the opportunity to make things right."
In February, a federal jury convicted Snipes of three counts of failing to file a tax return (from 1999 through 2001). Thursday he received 12 months for each count. Prosecutors say the actor owes a total of $41 million in taxes, of which he paid $5 at the sentencing. [...]
In February, Snipes, an Orlando native, was acquitted on the more serious charges of conspiracy to defraud the government and filing a false claim for a $7 million refund – both felonies – as well as three similar counts of failure to file returns for the years 2002, 2003 and 2004.
The prosecution, seeking to make an example of Snipes, had requested the maximum: three years in prison and a fine of at least $5 million. [...]
The defense, on the other hand, sought probation rather than prison time. "Wesley Snipes is not a dangerous man who needs to be imprisoned to protect the public," Snipes' attorney said in his sentencing memo.
"He is contrite, promises that he will never again break the law, and respectfully asks the court to consider not just the jury verdict but also all the good that he has done in his life."
