$718,000 Tax Dodge Could Spell Two Years In Jail For Fat Joe

He might have hit the headlines for having beef with 50 Cent of late, but it was Magistrate Judge Cathy Waldor who had a few words to say to rapper Fat Joe recently. On Thursday (December 21, 2012), Fat Joe pleaded guilty to criminal charges of failing to file his federal income tax returns, according to New York Daily News.

The 42 year-old hip hop star, real name Joseph Antonio Cartagena, admitted in court that he had failed to file any tax returns back in 2007 and 2008. This was despite the fact that he had earned over $1.3 million during 2007, as a result of his musical sales royalties and concert appearances. The following year was a similar story, as he raked in $1.4 million. It’s worth noting that he didn’t file in 2009 or 2010 either, despite earning $320,000 and $680,000 respectively. Luckily for Fat Joe, he managed to strike a plea bargain with the prosecutors which meant he was only being accountable for a two year period.

In total, it looks as though the rapper owes over $718,000 from his earnings. He’s currently on $250,000 bail but could well be facing a two year stretch in jail when he receives his sentence on April 3. So that will be his home in New Jersey resting empty for a while then…? Oh and his other home in Miami Beach. That’ll be empty as well. Looks like he’d been doing alright out of this tax evasion business… until he got caught, that is.