In the capitalistic world that we live in, it's all too easy to get attached to material things. And whilst you'd think this would ring most true for those who live on the poverty line, it's apparent that the same applies to the top one per cent, who earn mind-boggling amounts of money. Certainly, throughout the years we have heard story after story about some household name or the other who has ventured into criminal territory simply to hold onto their riches.
The latest victim of this is none other than the rapper DMX. While we know him for providing us with some of the biggest party anthems of the Noughties, it appears that the authorities are aware of him for a completely different reason.
Earl Simmons, who goes by the moniker DMX, was arrested last summer on the charge. And the IRS had purportedly been following the hip-hop singer and actor since at least 2005, when the revenue service began to suspect that he had evaded paying taxes on the income that he had amassed from 2002 to 2005, as his records continued to sell in their millions. However, no-one was aware of the scope of his crime, which currently comes to an eye-watering $1.7 million.
Yes, the X Gon' Give It To Ya singer is facing five years in prison for dodging $1.7 million in taxes.
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The 46-year-old pleaded guilty to tax fraud on Thursday, admitting that he had concealed millions of dollars of income in order to evade paying $1.7 million in taxes.
Judge Jed Rankoff has set the sentencing for the 29th March at Manhattan federal court, although this date is likely to be postponed as DMX is currently in rehabilitation for drug and alcohol addiction.
In a press statement, acting US attorney Joon Kim asserted that the rapper evaded the IRS by insisting on being paid in cash whenever possible, and by having his royalty payouts diverted into his managers' bank accounts. This practice continued during 2010 through to 2015, when he also failed to file tax returns. As such, he stated that DMX was "systematically cheating on his taxes".
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"No matter who you are or whatever fame you may have achieved, the law applies equally to all, and no one is exempt from the shared obligation to pay our taxes," Kim added.
Prosecutors alleged that the rapper deposited hundreds of thousands of dollars in royalty income into the bank accounts of his managers and friends, who in turn provided him with cash. The also said that when starring in the television show Celebrity Couples Therapy throughout 2011 and 2012, DMX refused to show up until producers agreed to hand over the $125,000 he was owed without withholding taxes. Further, they added that the singer filed a false affidavit in U.S Bankruptcy Court after listing his income as "unknown" for 2011 and 2012, and as $10,000 in 2013, even though he continued to make hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue throughout that period of. [[instagramwidget||https://www.instagram.com/p/BWjaohEBhvN/?taken-by=dmx]]
And in court on Thursday, the defamed rapper seemed adamant on eschewing blame, asserting that he had "put other people in charge" of him when producing hits such as 2003's X Gon' Give it to Ya. However, he ultimately admitted, "I'm responsible. ... I failed to file taxes".
Well, I guess we will just have to wait and see whether DMX serves the full five years in prison that he's facing. In the meantime, however, take a sneak peak into Beyoncé and Jay Z's relationship, as the hip-hop mogul has finally admitted to cheating on Queen B.