Plaxico Burress, a former NFL wide receiver who played for the New York Giants, New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers, has pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges.
Burress was indicted in April by a New Jersey grand jury in the first prosecution under a new statute that makes a failed electronic funds transfer the same as a bad check (see
Prosecutors said Burress had tried to pay his 2013 state income taxes, but the money from an electronic funds transfer to cover the tax payment didn’t go through, according to the AP. Although the state tax authority tried to contact Burress about the missed payment, he did not respond.
He faces up to five years of probation when he is sentenced in February. Burress will also need to pay $56,000 in restitution and penalties and could be sentenced to up to 364 days in prison if he does not make the payment by the time his probationary period is finished.
In 2009, Burress pleaded guilty to weapons charges after he accidentally shot himself in the thigh at a New York City nightclub because a pistol he was carrying in his waistband slid down the thigh of his pants and discharged. He was sentenced to two years in prison and two years of supervised release. He served 20 months in prison.
