Former Chicago Bears player pleads guilty to Federal tax charges

A former Chicago Bears player named Chris Zorich pleaded guilty to federal tax charges, as he admitted to the judge that he did not file his taxes as he was supposed to, on time.

Zorich, 43, faces four misdemeanor counts of not filing his federal income tax returns from the period of 2006 to 2009. During that time, he supposedly had made over $1 million, which included income from a charity that he had started himself.

The judge of the trial for Zorich asked him if he knew that it was wrong to not file the tax returns. Zorich responded that he knew that it was indeed a wrong act to commit, but he didn’t provide any reason as to why he went along with it anyway. Zorich’s attorney had stated that Zorich was very much looking forward to putting the case far behind him, and moving on.

Zorich is a Chicago native and played on the 1988 Notre Dame team that won the national championship. He also had played for the Chicago Bears from 1991 to 1996, ending his career with the Washington Redskins back in 1997.

The former Chicago Bears NFL player is looking at a payment of $71,000 in back taxes as a part of his plea agreement with the judge. His sentencing will be done on July 12. Each count for Zorich carries a maximum sentence of a year in prison, and also a $100,000 fine.