Prosecutors in Florida want a judge to restrict actor Wesley Snipes’ international travel because they say he attended a lavish party in Dubai while free on bond as he appeals a tax conviction.
Snipes attended the $20 million party last November for the opening of the $1.5 billion Atlantis Hotel resort, U.S. attorneys in Ocala, Fla., said in court filings Tuesday.
A jury convicted the action star last year of three counts of willfully failing to file his income taxes. Snipes is free on bond while he appeals the convictions and his three-year prison sentence to the 11th Circuit Court in Atlanta.
A federal judge last year said Snipes could travel only to London and Bangkok for work on the movies “Gallowwalker” and “Chasing the Dragon.”
Federal prosecutors said Snipes traveled 2,000 miles from Thailand to Dubai to attend the party.
“Defendant Snipes abused the Court’s trust, and did so in a very public way,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in its motion. “For that reason alone, the Court should deny his current request for international travel.”
The federal prosecutors also asked that Snipes’ bond be revoked pending the appeal.
The motion came in response to a request by Snipes to travel in April to Africa for a reshoot of several scenes from “Gallowwalker.” The actor also asked permission to go to Italy from May to August to film another movie, “Game of Death.”
“It is essential that Mr. Snipes complete this project to satisfy his civil tax liabilities and provide for his family,” his attorneys said in the filing.
Snipes’ attorney, Daniel Meachum, declined comment.
