Will Michael Jackson ever be left to rest in peace? Nearly five years after his passing, Michael Jackson and his estate face some pretty shocking allegations. According to legal documents obtained by the L.A. Times, when Jackson passed away the executors reported to the IRS that his net worth was just under $7 million (yes, this sounded low to us, as well). The IRS is now claiming that MJ’s net worth was actually $1.125 billion following his death.
To make matters worse, the IRS claims that executors so grossly misled them (by $505 million), that they doubled the tax penalty from the original 20 percent to an overwhelming 40 percent. So if you do the math, the IRS just slapped 40 percent on top of the $505 million they claim Jackson’s estate already owed taxpayers, resulting in a total of $702 million. Wow!
According to TMZ, the following items were mis-reported to the IRS:
— The Estate valued MJ’s likeness at $2,105. The IRS says the value is actually more than $434 million.
— The Estate valued Michael’s interest in a trust that owns songs by MJ and the Beatles at ZERO! The IRS says its more like $469 million.
— There’s another MJ trust the Estate claims is worth $2.2 mil. The IRS says it’s worth $60.6 mil.
— The Estate valued the Jackson 5 master recordings at $11.2 mil. The IRS says $45.5 mil.
And while the evidence seems to be piling up against MJ’s estate, an estate representative says that they stand by their initial statement on the matter.
“The Estate of Michael Jackson disputes the IRS position in its entirety,” the representative shared. “The Estate used independent, nationally-recognized and highly-qualified expert appraisers in determining the value of the Estate’s assets. By contrast, the IRS consultant’s values are not based on standard appraisal methodology, but rather are speculative and erroneous assumptions unsupported by the facts or law. The Estate has paid over $100 Million dollars in taxes and is in full compliance with the tax laws.”
Should the estate be found guilty of said allegations, they could very well lose everything Jackson’s estate has made since his passing. Yikes! – ruthie hawkins/@ruubabie
