NEW YORK -- The chief financial officer for a company licensing recipes from the real-life chef who inspired the "Soup Nazi" character on "Seinfeld" has been arrested on tax charges alleging he cheated the government out of a half million dollars.

Robert N. Bertrand was arrested Tuesday after being charged in Brooklyn federal court with failing to pay Medicare, Social Security and federal income taxes on behalf of the Staten Island-based Soupman Inc.

The company licenses the name and recipes of Al Yeganeh, whose New York soup stand was the inspiration for the "Soup Nazi" character from the television series "Seinfeld."

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"As alleged, the United States was fleeced out of more than half a million dollars through the defendant's corporate misdeeds," acting Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Rohde said in a statement Tuesday. "Tax crimes like those alleged in the indictment hurt every American citizen. My office and our law enforcement partners will prosecute such crimes to the full extent of the law."

The government says Bertrand paid Soupman employees unreported cash on the side and gave some workers large unreported stock awards.

Bertrand's lawyer did not immediately respond to a comment request.