Was Chris Hansen in jail for tax evasion? Fact-checking Dillon Danis' accusation at the 'To Catch a Predator' host

Dillon Danis partook in a verbal back-and-forth with US TV star and veteran journalist Chris Hansen onstage this week. BJJ savant and MMA fighter Danis is scheduled to make his boxing debut against YouTuber and WWE superstar Logan Paul.

Their fight will serve as one of the two headlining matchups of the MF & DAZN: X Series 10 – The Prime Card boxing event on October 14, 2023. During their pre-fight press conference, Paul alluded that Danis has relentlessly targeted his (Paul's) fiance Nina Agdal.

'El Jefe' has made several derogatory comments regarding Nina Agdal, besides posting NSFW photos and videos featuring her online. Agdal subsequently secured a restraining order against Danis and is suing 'El Jefe' for harassment and defamation. She's accused him of procuring her private content by hacking her social media and later posting it online.

During the pre-fight press conference, Logan Paul brought Chris Hansen onstage. Hansen is best known for the NBC TV series To Catch a Predator (2004-2007). The show garnered Hansen immense popularity, as he spearheaded sting operations to nab alleged child se**al predators (i.e. pe**philes).

Chris Hansen has hosted many other shows with similar formats in the ensuing years on NBC and later on other networks. Logan Paul referred to Dillon Danis as a "predator," citing his harassment campaign against Nina Agdal.

Paul noted that he'd, therefore, brought Hansen. He hinted that their press conference segment would feature on Hansen's show, Takedown with Chris Hansen. The YouTuber thereby referenced Hansen's history of catching se**al predators. Danis fired back by labeling Logan Paul's father a pe**phile. Besides, turning his attention to Hansen, Danis stated:

"He [Chris Hansen] is in jail for tax evasion... Go pay your taxes, buddy."

Chris Hansen disagreed with Dillon Danis' assertion regarding his alleged tax evasion issues. That said, in 2019, court records secured by the Daily Mail highlighted that Hansen owed over $250,000 in back taxes. Hansen also owed money to US Bank Trust, American Express, TD Bank, and Ally Financial. However, he wasn't arrested for tax evasion.

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A closer look at Dillon Danis' claims regarding Chris Hansen's tax evasion

Chris Hansen faced several allegations of tax evasion in 2019. Regardless, Dillon Danis' claims that the TV star was arrested for tax evasion appear to be incorrect. Hansen's arrest in January 2019 was in relation to a 2017 incident.

As reported by TMZ, in January 2019, Hansen was arrested for larceny due to a bounced check. Apparently, he'd failed to pay a vendor for $13,000 worth of promotional items bought in 2017.

Moreover, in 2021, Chris Hansen missed a mandatory court appearance concerning a 2020 sting operation. He was expected to provide evidence in a Michigan court concerning the operation. After an arrest warrant was issued, Hansen turned himself in, and the issue was resolved.

While the 2019 larceny charges were also dropped, the tax evasion allegations persisted. Hansen, for his part, has maintained that he's clear of wrongdoing as a taxpayer.