Andy Stein confesses: Ex-council chief pleads guilty to tax scam
Posted by Brooklyn Young Republican Club
Source: Bruce Golding / NY Post
He pleaded guilty to tax evasion, but not lying like a rug.
Toupée-wearing former City Council President Andrew Stein struck a plea bargain yesterday in which the feds dropped felony charges that he made false statements to the IRS and investigators probing his $2-million-plus tax scam.
The misdemeanor deal means the former Democratic pol will face no more than a year in jail and a $25,000 fine when he is sentenced March 1.
He also agreed to file amended returns dating back to 2003 and pay all taxes and penalties due.
Stein, 66, stood shamefaced in Manhattan federal court while admitting that he “stupidly” did not pay any income tax in 2008 — despite earning more than $1 million that he blew on travel, restaurant meals and a $150,000 Hamptons summer rental.
“It was 100 percent wrong. I did not pay it, and I was 100 percent wrong, and I am 100 percent sorry,” he said.
“I filed correctly, and I take responsibility for it. I intended to pay some, but there’s no question that it was absolutely wrong not to pay.”
His insistence that he intended to pony up prompted questioning from the judge about whether his crime was actually “willful.”
“Yes, sir . . . It was willful, sir,” he said. “There’s no question about it. It was willful. It was stupid.”
