On Monday, reality stars Todd Chrisley & Julie Chrisley started their federal trial in Atlanta, Georgia. They are facing a range of charges, including bank fraud and tax evasion. The trial is in its early stage, but some shocking details have come to light.
The prosecution claims that Todd Chrisley’s co-conspirator sent him a financial report showing that Chrisley had many millions in a bank account.
A financial statement that indicated that Chrisley had $4 million in Merrill Lynch bank account accounts was sent to a bank by Chrisley’s “coconspirator”.
This statement is supposedly false because Chrisley didn’t have a Merrill Lynch bank account at that time. According to the indictment Chrisley had $17,000 in cash at the time he opened a Merrill Lynch bank account in 2008.
According to the indictment, “a number of banks gave the conspirators millions of dollars in loans as a consequence of false representations like these,” and they used the money for their own benefit.
The Chrisleys “burned through” loans to purchase luxury items.
Annalise Petes, Assistant US Attorney stated in her opening statement Tuesday, that the Chrisleys not only had filed false documents that implied they were wealthier than they really were, but they also claimed that they “burned through the $30 million loans they received for luxury goods.”
Peters said to the jury that they created documents and lied to get what their hearts desired. Peters claims the Chrisleys hid money from the IRS while living a luxurious lifestyle.
Todd Chrisley’s lawyer stated that the couple exaggerated certain aspects of their lives to make their television show more popular.
Chrisley has boldly claimed that he spent more than $1 million on taxes over the years. Chrisley claimed in 2017 that he paid over $1 million annually in taxes. Peters also stated that he had not paid any taxes in years and that records at trial did not show significant payments. Chrisley also claimed that he spent $300,000.00 per year on clothing during an episode of “Chrisley Knows Best.”
It’s all part of the sizzle. When he spoke of his large wardrobe budget, he was actually bankrupt.
Morris said that Chrisley’s ex-employee who turned them over was also obsessed and wanted to be Todd.
Mark Braddock worked for the Chrisleys until 2012, and during that time, Chrisley’s attorney Bruce Morris argued, Braddock did everything he could so that he could “live like Todd,” including buying one of Chrisley’s former homes and impersonating Chrisley on the phone.
Morris claimed that Chrisley fired Braddock and that the ex-employee sought “revenge and protection” from the FBI. He claimed Chrisley was guilty of bank fraud.
The defense claimed that the Chrisleys “lied through their teeth” to get bank loans and avoid paying taxes, even after Braddock was fired.
The woman who made the Chrisleys famous was a previous employee to who he owed $10,000
Annie Kate Pons was a producer of “Chrisley Knows Best” and testified that she met Todd Chrisley back in 2009 in Los Angeles. She was an ex-DC reporter who moved to LA in order to pursue TV news.
She said that she met Todd Chrisley when trying to get into the business. He wanted to open a luxury department shop called “Chrisley and Co span>
Pons claimed that she tried to sell baby clothes to Chrisley. Pons stated that she was trying to sell baby clothes to Chrisley but he offered her a job at the department shop as a buyer.
She accepted the job and flew to New York Fashion Week to meet with designers. The store was never opened.
Chrisley eventually had to pay Pons 10,000 for the unpaid work she tried to get.
She replied, “But it never came.”
A few years later, though, when working in TV, Pons kept thinking of the Chrisley’s boisterous family and pitched a reality show in their name. The sizzle reel took off, and the show was sold to USA Network.
Pons testified that she only worked on the show for one season, but will be credited as a producer for the lifetime of the show — bringing in around $200,000 annually.