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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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Reporters gather around Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino as he leaves the MLK Jr. Federal Courthouse in Newark, N.J., after a court appearance on Wednesday. The former "Jersey Shore" reality series star and his brother underpaid taxes on nearly $9 million in income over the last several years, the U.S. attorney's office charged in a seven-count indictment released Wednesday.
'Jersey Shore' star pleads not guilty to tax counts
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NEWARK, N.J. — A former star of the MTV reality show "Jersey Shore" and his brother filed bogus tax returns on nearly $9 million and claimed millions in business expenses — including luxury vehicles and clothing — that were actually for personal use, according to an indictment released Wednesday.
Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino and his brother Marc pleaded not guilty through their attorneys during a brief initial appearance in U.S. District Court. Neither made any statements during or after the proceeding, though when Mike Sorrentino was asked outside the courthouse if he was innocent he smiled and replied, "Of course."
Each brother was released on $250,000 bail and scheduled for arraignment on Oct. 6.
According to the seven-count indictment, the Sorrentinoos earned about $8.9 million between 2010 and 2012, mostly through two companies they controlled, MPS Entertainment and Situation Nation. They allegedly filed false documents that understated the income from the businesses as well as their personal income. Mike Sorrentino also is charged with failing to file taxes for 2011, a
year in which he earned nearly $2 million.
The brothers also allegedly spent millions of dollars on personal expenses they claimed were for business In 2012, for example, the brothers filed documents with an unnamed accounting firm in Staten Island that claimed $3.9 million in business expenses, according to the indictment released by U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman.
{"He] created the illusion that [he] earned less income by filing false... tax returns."
Both brothers are charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, which is punishable by a maximum prison sentence of five years upon conviction.
JONATHAN D. LARSEN
Head of IRS-Criminal
Investigation, Newark
Marc Sorrentino faces three counts of filing false returns from 2010 to 2012 and Mike Sorrentino is charged with two counts, in addition to one count of failing to file taxes for 2011. The conspiracy is alleged to have run from early 2010 to late 2013 in Monmouth and Ocean counties in New Jersey.
The false filing counts carry maximum potential prison sentences of three years; failure to file carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison.
"Rather than living in reality and reporting their true income, Michael Sorrentino and his brother Marc created the illusion that they earned less income by filing false and fraudulent tax returns," said Jonathan D. Larsen, head of IRS-Criminal Investigation, Newark.
Christopher Adams, an attorney for Marc Sorrentino, blasted the government's case.
"He has spent the better part of a year trying to show them flaws in their theory, and it is unfortunate that the government has chosen to rely on the word of a disgraced accountant who is a proven liar," Adams told The Associated Press in an email.
Richard Sapinski, an attorney representing Mike Sorrentino, didn't comment after the hearing and didn't return a message seeking comment.
The cast of the MTV reality show were known for their rowdy lifestyle that occasionally led to legal scrapes. In July, Mike Sorrentino agreed to take anger management classes to resolve assault charges stemming from a July 15 fight with his brother at their family's tanning salon.
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Drill sergeant found guilty of sex assaults
FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — A Missouri drill sergeant is guilty of sexually assaulting and harassing eight female soldiers, a military judge ruled Wednesday.
Army Staff Sgt. Angel M. Sanchez, 30, was accused of using his supervisory position with the 14th Military Police Brigade at Fort Leonard Wood to isolate his victims and win their trust with favors, including cake and ice cream. One woman testified that failing to cooperate would have jeopardized her military status.
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The women said the incidents took place in the bathroom of the female barracks as well as in an office shared by drill sergeants.
Sanchez, a married father of two, was found guilty of three criminal charges including four counts of sexual assault and six counts of abusive sexual contact, as well as several lesser charges of maltreatment.
The Philadelphia native didn't testify during the three-day court-martial but apologized to his victims, many of whom were in the courtroom, after the verdict.
"I hope someday you'll be able to forgive me," he said. "I let a lot of people down."
At the outset of the military trial, Sanchez pleaded guilty
Military prosecutors recommended a 25-year sentence; Sanchez's lawyers asked for an eight-year sentence.
"The government wants to focus on this overwhelming control Sgt. Sanchez had over his accusers," Gapasin said before the verdict was announced. "What this case is really about is consent and
to three charges of disobeying orders by having sexual contact with three female trainees. Several additional accusations against Sanchez were dismissed after a pretrial hearing in the spring.
Sanchez's attorney Ernesto Gapasin questioned the accusers' credibility, noting that some of the initial accusers were either facing disciplinary action of their own or forced separation from the military at the time complaints against Sanchez were raised.
Sanchez was found not guilty of nine counts, including an allegation of rape brought by a medic in Afghanistan while he was stationed there in 2011 and 2012.
Sanchez also served one tour in Iraq, where he earned a Bronze Star and two other combat medals before arriving at the Missouri post in August 2013.
Several of his victims testified about how the assaults left them filled with fear, self-doubt and a lingering mistrust of the institution they pledged to faithfully serve.
conjecture."
conjecture.
The charges against Sanchez were filed in May, days before a Pentagon study on sex assault in the military found that more than 5,000 reports of sexual abuse had been filed in the previous fiscal year, a 50 percent increase from the previous 12 months.
"I no longer wanted to be part of the Army," one female soldier said. "I didn't trust any of my superiors, or even my male peers."
Pressure from Congress led to several reforms in how the military justice system handles sex assault complaints. Accusers are now assigned lawyers to guide them through the legal process, and the statute of limitations has been eliminated. Anyone convicted of a sexual assault in the military faces a required minimum sentence of a dishonorable discharge.
Staff Sgt. Angel Sanchez is accused of using his supervisory position with the 14th Military Police Brigade to threaten some of the women he was tasked with training. Most of the allegations involved women at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri.
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