Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino from MTV’s “Jersey Shore” reality TV series has been hit with serious tax-dodging charges — again.
The 34-year-old and his brother Marc Sorrentino were indicted in Newark, New Jersey, on Friday on new charges of tax evasion and falsifying records, including filing a false return for the reality star’s fashion line Situation Nation, according to federal court documents.
The superceding indictment updates charges filed in 2014 that accused the reality star of conspiring to defraud the U.S. by dodging taxes from 2010 to 2012 on $8.9 million in income from promotional events. He evaded payment by filing false returns and by claiming millions in business expenses, including pricey cars and “personal grooming,” according to the first indictment.
The new charges accuse The Situation of structuring funds to evade currency transaction reports, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Jersey. His brother is charged with falsifying records to obstruct a grand jury investigation.
If convicted of all of the charges, the brothers could each face 20 years in prison.
The indictment accuses them of creating businesses, including MPS Entertainment and Situation Nation, to “exploit Michael’s celebrity status,” acting U.S. Attorney William Fitzpatrick said in a statement.
They allegedly “filed or caused to be filed ... false tax returns that understated gross receipts, claimed fraudulent business deductions, and disguised income payments made to the brothers and to others and underreported net business income.”
The indictment alleges that Mike Sorrentino failed to file a personal 2011 income tax return. At one point, he made several cash deposits on the same day in several bank accounts in amounts of less than $10,000 allegedly to evade the banks’ IRS reporting requirements, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office statement.
The brothers are scheduled to be arraigned April 17.
Mike Sorrentino’s attorney issued a statement to People magazine saying: “Michael Sorrentino will enter a not guilty plea on April 17, and will vigorously contest the allegations in court.”
Mike and Marc Sorrentino, along with their brother Frank, are scheduled to star in the “Family Edition” season of the relationship-mending “Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars” beginning April 28.