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Mike Tyson, Who Owes The IRS Millions, Says He Likes Taxes

Mike Tyson, Who Owes The IRS Millions, Says He Likes Taxes
By 

Associate Business Editor, The Huffington Post

Sure, Mike Tyson owes millions to the Internal Revenue Service, but that doesn't mean he has anything against the idea of taxes more generally.

The former boxer-turned-Hollywood star said in an interview on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends” Monday that he actually is looking forward to one day performing the "duty" of paying off his taxes.

“I know they say that’s legal extortion, but listen, I’m living in this country and if I got to pay taxes, that’s the money that I paid for my life on Earth,” he said.

Despite making roughly $400 million over the course of his career, the heavyweight champion was forced to declare bankruptcy in 2003. He's currently trying to get his own one-man live performance show off the ground and said in a recent interview that he will “never be wealthy again.”

Tyson, who noted he was in better financial shape when Republicans ran the White House, nevertheless stated that he has high hopes that the 2010 Affordable Care Act, also commonly known as Obamacare, will help him “keep some money.”

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Before You Go

Celebrity Tax Evaders
Dwayne "Lil Wayne" Carter(01 of14)
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Lil Wayne had an IRS lien filed with Miami Dade County in late March 2011. The lien noted that Lil Wayne had unpaid income taxes amounting to $3,351,078 for 2008 and $2,258,956 for 2009. (credit:Getty)
Richard Dent(02 of14)
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Dent was hit with a $1,160,056 federal tax lien in March 2011. The former Chicago Bears player was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame one month prior. (credit:Getty)
Lindsay Lohan(03 of14)
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In January 2012, Lindsay Lohan reportedly received notice from the IRS that she owed over $93,000 in unpaid taxes from 2009. According to TMZ, the actress was simply unaware of the issue. (credit:Getty)
David "Sinbad" Adkins(04 of14)
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According to AOL Real Estate, Sinbad was said to owe $8.5 million to the IRS in 2010 and another $2.1 million to the state of California that year. Sinbad was named as one of the state's biggest tax evaders in 2009. (credit:Getty)
Darryl Strawberry(05 of14)
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In 2008, former Met and Yankee Darryl Strawberry agreed to pay more than $430,000 in back taxes he owed, plus interest and penaltie, for money he neglected to pay in 1989 and 1990. (credit:Getty)
Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne (06 of14)
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According to the IRS, Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon owed $1.7 million in taxes from 2008 and 2009. (credit:Getty)
Forest Whitaker(07 of14)
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Actor Forest Whitaker was hit with a large tax bill last year, after failing to pay $185,000 he owed to the IRS. The tax collectors in the Los Angeles County Recorder of Deeds cited Whitaker and filed a lien for the balance. (credit:Getty)
Chris Tucker(08 of14)
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Actor Chris Tucker had a tax lien filed against him in the state of Georgia earlier this year for $592,594.08, plus $11,571,909.26 from the federal government for taxed owed in 2001, 2002 and 2004 through 2006. (credit:Getty)
Pamela Anderson(09 of14)
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"Baywatch" actress Pamela Anderson owed nearly half a million dollars to the IRS in 2010. (credit:Getty)
Richard Pryor(10 of14)
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In 1974, comedian Richard Pryor was sentenced to 10 days in jail, fined and put on probation after pleading guilty to a charge of willful failure to file an income tax return, according to the New York Times. (credit:Getty)
El DeBarge(11 of14)
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Singer El DeBarge owed $354,000 in delinquent federal taxes in 2010, according to Vibe.com. (credit:Getty)
Sammy Davis, Jr.(12 of14)
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Davis owed nearly $7.5 million in back taxes at the time of his death. (credit:Getty)
Christina Ricci (13 of14)
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"Pan Am" actress Christina Ricci was hit with a federal income tax lien of nearly $180,000 on her 2008 earnings. (credit:Getty)
Wesley Snipes(14 of14)
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In December 2010, actor Wesley Snipes began a three-year prison sentence for failing to file income tax returns in the amount of $7 million. (credit:Getty)
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