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Rapper DMX busted for tax fraud

NEW YORK -- Rapper DMX has been arrested in New York on federal tax fraud charges.

Prosecutors say the rapper, whose given name is Earl Simmons, owes $1.7 million in taxes and has engaged in a multi-year scheme to conceal millions of dollars of income from the IRS.

Prosecutors say Simmons raked in millions from his songs -- including his 2003 hit "X Gon' Give it to Ya" -- and avoided paying taxes by setting up accounts in other's names and paying personal expenses largely in cash.

The 46-year-old Yonkers native was arrested on Thursday and was scheduled to appear in Manhattan federal court Friday. A telephone call to his previous lawyer's office went unanswered.

In 2015, Simmons spent more than two months in a New York jail for failing to pay child support.

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