Whew! former ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta’ star, Peter Thomas, will be heading to prison after reportedly dodging his payments to the government.
RELATED: Bar NONE? Peter Thomas Under Investigation For Allegedly Refusing To Pay ‘Bar One’ Employees | TSR Investigates
Details On Peter Thomas Prison Sentence
TMZ reports that Peter Thomas was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for failing to pay over $2.5 million in employment taxes. The Baltimore Banner revealed that Thomas pled guilty to “one count of failure to pay over trust fund taxes” this past summer in a Charlotte federal court.
U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell Sr. hit Thomas with two years of supervised release and ordered him to pay back the money. Assistant U.S. Attorney Caryn Finley also pushed for at least two years behind bars, calling him out for being greedy and ignoring the law. She claimed he used the cash to “personally enrich himself and to expand and support his other business ventures,” dropping over $250K on luxury splurges at spots like Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Givenchy, per The Baltimore Banner.
“Americans can spend their money as they see fit, including on business ventures. However, they cannot steal other people’s money—in this case their employees’ payroll taxes—to prop up their otherwise failing business ventures,” Finley wrote in a sentencing memo.
TMZ claims Peter owed the IRS almost $650,000 in trust fund taxes from his Charlotte employees’ wages. He’s also accused of skipping out on over $2.5 million in employment taxes across multiple states over six years. The Baltimore Banner adds that between 2017 and 2023, the ‘RHOA’ alum ran businesses like Club ONE CLT, Sports ONE, Bar One Miami Beach, and Bar One Baltimore, where over $1.7 million was taken from employees’ paychecks without being paid to the IRS, according to federal prosecutors.
Social Media Reacts
The Roommates quickly filled The Shade Room’s comment section with reactions to Peter Thomas’ sentencing. See what they had to say below.
Instagram user @slimtiing_ wrote, “Real Housewives what’s going on.”
Instagram user @dollface876 wrote, “Didn’t he know not to play with IRS😭”
While Instagram user @deondolla wrote, “I’d rather do 18months than pay 2.5 million myself lol.”
Then Instagram user @yummyr1ss wrote, “I’m glad Cynthia don’t mess with him anymore.”
Another Instagram user @diva_dutchess wrote, “He get jail time, Trump gets to be POTUS again 🤦🏽♀️”
Instagram user @aishmaa wrote, “Now go after these billionaires blanco Ceo’s.”
Finally, Instagram user @stuntiinizahabit wrote, “Is it me or is it only us that get into trouble with taxes.”
Peter Speaks Out Prior To His Sentencing
Before his sentencing, Peter Thomas uploaded a video on Instagram on Wednesday, December 18, and kept it real with his followers. The restauranteur admitted he pled guilty and owned up to “withholding taxes for 10 years” across his businesses. He also advised young entrepreneurs to always pay their withholding taxes so they don’t end up in his position.
Check out what Peter had to say below.
