15 agos 2017 año - WALL STREET JOURNAL
TMG Face Federal Probes
FBI
IRS, Justice Department
and SEC look into TMG
Descripción:
FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL:
Johnny Depp’s Former Business Managers Face Federal Probes
IRS, Justice Department and SEC look into Management Group
By Scott Patterson, Justin Baer and Ben Fritz
Federal investigators from three agencies are probing a top Hollywood business-management firm facing fraud allegations from a former client, actor Johnny Depp, according to people familiar with the situation.
The Internal Revenue Service and Justice Department are jointly looking into possible fraud and money laundering by the Management Group, founded by brothers Joel and Rob Mandel, the people said.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is separately investigating how the Management Group handled Mr. Depp’s funds, according to people familiar with the matter.
Mr. Depp sued the brothers in January and is seeking more than $25 million in damages from the Mandels for alleged fraud and professional negligence. The Mandels have denied Mr. Depp’s claims in a countersuit, calling them “baseless.”
The IRS-Justice Department probe, which is in its early stages, is being led by the IRS’s criminal investigation division and is currently focused on elements of the Mandels’ dealings with Mr. Depp, according to people familiar with the matter. Mr. Depp’s lawyers have met with government officials, the people said.
The probe may not result in any charges against the Management Group or its owners. Federal investigators typically look at the possibility of money laundering as they trace the path of funds that allegedly have been misappropriated, said the people familiar with the situation.
“In 30 years of business, no current or former client of TMG has raised any issue” of impropriety other than Mr. Depp, a lawyer for the Management Group said.
The SEC has subpoenaed at least one person in its probe, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The actor in his lawsuit alleged the Mandels invested millions of his dollars into ventures partly owned by the Management Group and the Mandels, which the lawsuit says created a conflict of interest. The firm in its countersuit called those allegations “absurd,” claiming that Mr. Depp cashed out one such $1.5 million investment in 2008 for a profit and that another, for less than $450,000, has been profitable.
Business managers are a staple in Hollywood, charged with making investments, paying bills and handling taxes for wealthy actors and executives. Like many business-management firms in Hollywood, the Management Group maintains a low profile and keeps its client list private.
Mr. Depp alleged in his lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in January, that the Mandels caused him to lose tens of millions of dollars, incur more than $40 million in debt and dispose of significant assets.
The Mandels, who worked for Mr. Depp from 1999 to March 2016, said in the countersuit that the actor’s financial problems are the result of his own overspending and failure to heed repeated warnings. Alleging breach of contract and fraud, they claimed Mr. Depp lived a “selfish, reckless and irresponsible lifestyle” that cost $2 million a month.
The Mandels claim they repeatedly warned Mr. Depp that he couldn’t continue to afford his lifestyle, their suit claims. He responded “by rebuking and cursing his business managers for issuing such warnings and advice,” according to their suit.
The Management Group is seeking $560,000 in unpaid fees and a ruling that the movie star himself is solely responsible for his financial situation. Both suits are pending.
Mr. Depp, in an April interview with The Wall Street Journal, said it was the Mandels’ negligence and fraud, not his spending, that caused him to lose tens of millions of dollars over more than a decade.
Mr. Depp in his suit also accused the Mandels of failing to make timely tax payments on his income for years, resulting in about $8 million in penalties. The Mandels, in their firm’s countersuit, said they were unable to pay all of Mr. Depp’s taxes because he was “squandering vast sums of money and had insufficient funds to timely pay all of his taxes.”
Añadido al timeline:
The Johnny Depp Chronology
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard Complete Timeline
The Johnny De...
fecha:
Fotos:
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
