Lauryn Hill starts prison sentence over tax evasion

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-23238576

Version 0 of 1.

Former Fugees singer Lauryn Hill has begun a three-month prison sentence in Connecticut for tax evasion.

The 38-year-old was sentenced in May for failing to pay tax on $1.8m (£1.2m) of her earnings between 2005-07.

A spokesman for the federal Bureau of Prisons said the singer had reported to a minimum security prison in Danbury.

After release, Hill will be under parole supervision for a year, with the first three months to be spent confined to her home.

Open prison

The singer will be housed with the general population at the Federal Correctional Institution of Danbury, where prisoners live in open dormitory-style living quarters and are expected to work in jobs such as maintenance, food service or landscaping.

After pleading guilty last year, Hill's lawyer had sought probation for the singer, arguing her charitable works, family circumstances and the fact that she later paid back the taxes she owed, should merit consideration.

During her sentencing, Hill said she had intended to pay the taxes but could not after withdrawing from public life and ending her music career to raise her children.

Hill began singing with hip-hop group The Fugees as a teenager before releasing her acclaimed solo debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, in 1998.

It went on to win five Grammy awards and sold more than 19 million copies worldwide.