Chef Gets 1-Year Sentence For Fraud, Money Laundering

CHICAGO (AP) — The chef-owner of several Chicago-area Chinese restaurants has been sentenced to one year in prison for underpaying taxes by not reporting cash receipts.

U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve on Friday also fined Tony Hu $100,000 in addition to the $1.087 million he had already paid in restitution to Illinois.

Hu pleaded guilty in May to one count each of wire fraud and money laundering. His attorneys asked for probation, citing his hard work and record of community giving. Defense attorneys also provided letters from Hu's friends and family asking for leniency.

The 48-year-old Hu, whose real name is Hu Xiaojun, runs the Tony Gourmet Group. Besides restaurants in the Chicago area, the group operates one restaurant in Connecticut and one in Las Vegas.

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