Todd and Julie Chrisley have been found guilty of tax evasion.
Todd and Julie Chrisley have been found guilty
The 'Chrisley Knows Best' stars have been on trial for weeks and on Tuesday (07.06.22), they were found guilty of 12 counts of tax evasion, bank and wire fraud and conspiracy in 2019, but they are planning to appeal the verdict.
Their lawyer said in a statement: “Disappointed in the verdict. An appeal is planned.”
The pair will be sentenced at a later date.
Todd previously denied the allegations and insisted former employee Mark Braddock was out for "revenge" against them.
He said in a statement in 2019: “He took a bunch of his phony documents to the U.S. Attorney’s office and told them we had committed all kinds of financial crimes, like tax evasion and bank fraud.
"That got their attention all right, but once we had a chance to explain who he was and what he’d done to us, they realized it was all a bunch of nonsense and they sent him on his way. [He] persuaded a different set of investigators at the U.S. Attorney’s office not only to reopen the case but also to grant him immunity from prosecution for his own crimes and bring charges against us.”
But it was alleged in court Todd and Julie had "lied through their teeth" about their wealth to obtain more than $30 million in loans.
Assistant US Attorney Annalise Peters said: “They made up documents and they lie through their teeth to get whatever they want, whenever they want it."
The attorney also alleged the reality stars had continued to hide funds from the IRS even after Mark - who worked with the government on the case - was no longer associated with them and had "targeted" community banks by using "scrapbooking" to cut and paste different financial documents together.
She added: “All along, the goal was to hide the money."
Mark took to the stand during the trial and claimed he and Todd had enjoyed "a personal relationship of an intimate nature".
Todd and Julie's lawyer, Bruce Morris, denied his claim.
He said in his closing statement: "I suggest to you that Mark Braddock is the very picture of reasonable doubt."