Richard Hatch Headed to Prison Yet Again

ne of the standouts on the new season of Donald Trump's 'Celebrity Apprentice' is in very hot water.

Learning his IRS lesson the hard way, original 'Survivor' champ Richard Hatch was ordered on Friday to return to prison to serve a nine-month sentence, says the Hollywood Reporter. A judge is punishing Hatch for (still) not paying taxes he allegedly owes on the $1 million prize (plus thousands for additional media appearances) he earned back in 2000 as the very first winner of CBS' hit series.

Hatch now owes approximately $2 million in taxes and penalties. He has vehemently proclaimed his innocence.

The 49-year-old Army veteran already served time behind bars for tax evasion, for more than three years. He was released in 2009, vowing that "whatever is owed, I will pay," but describing himself as "financially devastated."

At the time, he remarked that his years in jail "reduced my arrogance," but insisted he was persecuted by an overzealous prosecution that failed, according to Hatch, to overlook his sexual orientation. He told Matt Lauer, "My personal opinion: [The prosecutor] discriminated against me. I do believe that. I don't think you or anyone else could deny that we, as homosexuals, face discrimination."
Hatch is now under orders to surrender to U.S. Marshals by noon on Monday. District Court Judge William E. Smith slapped the TV personality with an additional sentence to take effect after prison -- 29 months of supervised release, with a requirement that 25 percent of Hatch's gross wages be paid to the IRS.

The judge scolded Hatch on Friday, "You can continue to proclaim your innocence. You don't have the option of engaging in this type of game or negotiation with the court. It needs to be a severe punishment. That's the only thing that will deter you in the future."

At the sentencing in Rhode Island, where Hatch resides, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew J. Reich told the court Hatch "acted with deliberation" by failing to file "and did not make any effort to pay the amount he owed in taxes and penalties to the IRS."

U.S. Attorney Peter Neronha said in a news release, "The sentence imposed by Judge Smith, the maximum sentence allowed under the guidelines, sends the right message that regardless how hard you try to manipulate the system to avoid paying your taxes, in the end you will be held accountable."