Twista could be facing prison time after pleading guilty to five counts of willfully failing to pay income tax.
According to documents obtained by XXL on Monday (June 29), Twista, born Carl Mitchell, pleaded guilty in May to not paying taxes from 2019 to 2023, despite making money from multiple sources of income, including shows, streaming royalties, album sales and music licensing.
The docs allege the Chicago rapper received plenty of warnings from both the IRS and his accountant, but instead of handling it, he made deals with a third-party company to get advances on his future royalties. Prosecutors say this was his way of trying to hide his money so the IRS couldn’t garnish it.
Investigators are also accusing Twista of spending “heavily” during this period instead of using the money to pay his taxes, including the purchase of at least four luxury vehicles.
Court records show he has been facing unpaid tax issues dating all the way back to 2011, and they now total more than $440,000. Each of the five charges carries a maximum penalty of up to one year in prison, though the sentence is ultimately up to the judge.
Twista has not publicly commented on the guilty plea or the allegations detailed in the court filings. Notably, however, he did post on X in late May, “Wouldn’t it be cool if Nurse’s doctors and fireman didn’t have to pay taxes.”
He is set to be sentenced on Oct. 22.
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