Following a court hearing earlier this week, Dance Moms’ star Abby Lee Miller has been sentenced by a federal judge in Pittsburgh to one year and one day in prison for bankruptcy fraud.
Deadline have reported that the 50-year-old choreographer pleaded guilty to fraud charges.
Chief Judge Joy Flowers Conti has ordered Abby to pay a fine of $USD40,000 and a $USD120,000 judgment for the currency-reporting violation charge uncovered over a year ago.
“You weren’t truthful, even when you knew you were supposed to tell everything, you still weren’t truthful,” Judge Conti told a tearful Abby.
“Somehow you got caught up in the world of fame and you lost your moral compass,” she added.
Abby with her celebrated prodigy, Maddie Ziegler.
Abby is believed to have admitted during the proceedings, “Dance Moms became a hit and I became the laughingstock of reality TV.”
The 50-year-old first filed for bankruptcy in 2010.
Five years later she she was indicted on 20 counts of bankruptcy fraud, concealment of bankruptcy assets, and false bankruptcy declarations.
Among the charges, it was unveiled that Abby brought in $120,000 worth of Australian currency into America, without declaring it.
Outside the courtroom, Abby’s lawyer Robert Ridge said that his client “respects” the judge’s decision and has no plans to appeal.
“I feel relieved, I feel peaceful,” Abby added to her attorney’s comments.
Abby and Maddie came to Australia in 2015 for the ASTRA Awards.
The TV personality has 45 days to report to prison, and will likely serve nine months of the sentence followed by two years of supervised release.
Abby Miller became a household name after starring in the America reality series, Dance Moms.
The dance instructor famously trained teen star Maddie Ziegler, who is well-known for her regular appearances in singer Sia’s music videos.
