Abby Lee Miller, the star of Dance Moms is accused of hiding $775,000 worth of income from the Lifetime network and spinoff projects while her Chapter 11 bankruptcy was pending.

Miller's income was questioned after a channel-surfing bankruptcy judge saw Miller on TV in December 2012, and figured that the reality TV star had to be earning more than the $8,999 a month that she reported, according to the 20-count bankruptcy fraud indictment announced on Oct. 14 by federal prosecutors in Pittsburgh.

While Miller claimed to be earning just under $9k a month, in reality she was earning as much as $15,000 per an episode of Dance Moms and up to $25,000 for each episode of Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition – and that's not counting her monthly income from dance sessions, public events, merchandise and apparel sales, the indictment said.

Miller, 50, was not arrested but she will receive a court summons to appear before a federal magistrate on Nov. 5 in Pittsburgh.

Criminal Prosecution is 'Appropriate'

U.S. Attorney David Hickton said that criminal prosecution is appropriate when debtors corrupt the bankruptcy process by lying or being deceitful.

The Dance Moms star is known for being harsh and expecting perfection from her students. Critics of the show argue that Miller is emotionally abusive toward the girls, and many episodes show her students breaking down into tears after being the target of her criticism.

Miller has been charged with:

• Two counts of bankruptcy fraud
• Five counts of concealing bankruptcy assets
• Thirteen counts of making false bankruptcy declarations

Each of the counts mentioned carry up to five years in prison.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Agresti said in the indictment, that if it wasn't for him channel surfing one night and seeing Miller's Ultimate Dance Competition on TV… he realized that there's an awful lot of money coming into her case, and it was not disclosed.

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