‘American Chopper’ Star Paul Teutul Files For Bankruptcy, Sued For Fraud
American Chopper star Paul Teutul Sr. has filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy days after news broke that he was being sued for fraud.
Teutul Files For Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
The TV personality filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy on Tuesday, Feb. 27 in New York. In court documents obtained by Page Six, Teutul stated that he has run up a debt of $1,070,893, which he has to repay to 50 creditors but he has a net worth of only $1,801,729.
He added that although he makes approximately $15,000 a month, his expenses are roughly $12,600. Among his assets, he listed a family-owned property located 95 Judson Road in Montgomery, NY and claimed that he has a fee interest to the tune of $1.8 million in the property.
Teutul, who also made an appearance in the 2007 comedy, Wild Hogs, recently put the house up for sale and the 38-acre estate is now in foreclosure. Along with the house, he also named three cars, four canines as well an "old desktop" as his assets.
The founder of Orange County Choppers also said that there's a $32,000 judgment against him and not only does he have to cough up about $150,000 to pay taxes to the Town of Crawford in New York, he also has $21,300 in credit card debt.
Teutul Sued For Fraud
Earlier this week, reports surfaced that Thomas Derbyshire sued Teutul for allegedly sabotaging a television project and using his investment to pay for his personal expenses.
In the lawsuit, Derbyshire said that he and Teutul agreed to join hands for the A&E show Orange County Choppers: American Made in 2015, for which he agreed to pay $3 million as an investment.
However, he claims they had a fallout after Teutul tried to change their ownership deal from 51-49 percent to 50-50 percent. Derbyshire also alleged that Teutul held up the show's production by going on a weeklong "fishing trip to his cabin in upstate New York."
Teutul also allegedly refused to film scenes with Sons of Anarchy star Rusty Coones, thereby violating his contract with the network. The lawsuit filed in April also accused the American Choppers star of being involved in several side deals without his consent. He added that Teutul used the company's funds to pay Michael, his son, even though the expense is not part of their budget.
American Chopper initially ran from 2003 through 2010 and is slated to return to the Discovery Channel on Thursday, March 1.