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Yoga Chain Evaded Taxes on $20 Million a Year, Owners Face 30 Years In Federal Prison

Yoga Chain Evaded Taxes on $20 Million a Year, Owners Face 30 Years In Federal Prison

Controversial Yoga to the People founder Greg Gumucio -- once a disciple of Bikram yoga creator Bikram Choudhury -- and his business partners allegedly evaded taxes on approximately $20 million per year, storing cash payments in tissue boxes and guitar cases.

The company was founded in 2006, but reached the height of its operations between 2013 and 2020, developing something of a cult following that included celebrities like Mary-Kate Olsen and Swedish reality star Sofia Kristina Hellqvist.

Alec Baldwin's wife, Hilaria Baldwin, was even an instructor before opening her own yoga studio.

MarketWatch shared details about the company's business model:

The leaders of a national chain of yoga centers that offered classes for free or for small cash donations, have been hit with major tax fraud charges for allegedly failing to pay any taxes for nearly a decade while taking in up to $20 million a year.

Around the time Yoga to the People closed its studios in 2020, purportedly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, allegations of both sexual abuse and psychological abuse against Gumucio emerged. 

Now, as this new controversy develops, co-owner and Chief Financial Officer Michael Anderson, 51, and Chief Communications Officer Haven Soliman, 33, have also been named in the tax evasion case. 

Anderson, Soliman, and Gumucio, now 61, were all arrested yesterday, August 24, 2022. One report notes that the trio faces up to 30 years in federal prison if they are convicted on one count of conspiracy to defraud the IRS and five counts of tax evasion.

The arrests occurred in Washington State, but prosecution will be led by the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, according to a report from the New York Times

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams shared a statement regarding the ongoing case:

"The defendants perpetrated their scheme in various ways, including paying employees in cash and off the books, refusing to provide employees with tax documentation, not maintaining books and records, paying personal expenses from business accounts and using nominees to disguise their connection to various entities. At least two of the defendants even submitted fabricated tax returns to third parties when seeking a loan or an apartment, despite not filing any tax returns with the I.R.S."

The Times also reported on Yoga to the People's origins, and how the company became a haven for the cooler-than-thou (but paying New York City rent) crowd when it emerged a decade ago:

Yoga to the People began as a small studio in Manhattan's East Village, where students merely paid an optional donation -- the amount was up to them -- to practice pranayamas and downward-facing dogs in classes that appealed to the city's hip, fit and budget conscious.

The newspaper noted that this is not the first time Gumucio has been "on the wrong side of the law." In 1982, he pleaded guilty to second-degree forgery and in 1983, admitted guilt to theft charges. 

Then, in 1986, he was charged with attempted escape from law enforcement custody in Colorado and sentenced to six years of prison time. Per the Times, however, it is not clear how much time he actually served on that charge.

In 2004, Gumucio was accused of rape, but the alleged victim stopped cooperating with law enforcement. All this, of course, occurred before the aforementioned 2020 allegations began popping up online.

It is not immediately clear when the three defendants will next appear in court. 

What do you think about the Yoga to the People tax scandal?

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