RHOAAlum Peter Thomas Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud, Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison

Mar. 15, 2025

Peter Thomas.Photo:Raymond Boyd/Getty

Raymond Boyd/Getty

A sentence inPeter Thomas' tax evasion case has been decided.

Thomas pleaded guilty in July to failure to pay over trust fund taxes after prosecutors said he evaded more than $2 million in employment taxes for several of his businesses between 2017 to 2023.

The judgment in his case states that he will not have to surrender into custody until July 2025 or later and the court has recommended that he be imprisoned “as close to Miami … as possible.”

PEOPLE has reached out to Thomas' lawyer for comment.

(L) Cynthia Bailey and Peter Thomas.Santiago Felipe/Getty

Thomas' sentencing comes afterThe Baltimore Bannerreported that a federal prosecutor memo regarding his case aimed to justify a prison sentence on Dec. 10.

Thomas, owner of Bar One restaurants, was accused of failing to pay employment taxes for his businesses and instead spent just under $375,000 on travel and ride-sharing services as well as $250,000 on luxury goods from Neiman Marcus, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and more.

Peter Thomas.Peter Thomas/instagram

One day before receiving his sentence, the former reality star shared a message regarding his decision to plead guilty in a video shared onInstagram.

“I’ll be making an appearance in the United States government federal courthouse here in Charlotte, North Carolina, to face the music,” he told his followers. “The music of … consistently withholding taxes for [my] businesses [for] over 10 years.”

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In his caption, Thomas told other small business owners to learn from his mistakes.

“Public announcement, most people are confused when it come to paying withholding taxes, I am here to set the record straight, yes you will go to jail, [yes] you still have to pay the taxes,” he wrote. “Also, jail don’t mean that the taxes is forgiven. All young business owner, please learn for my mistake.”

source: people.com