BARCELONA, Spain — A Spanish court has
ordered
Colombian music superstar Shakira to stand trial in a tax fraud case at
a date yet to be determined, court documents showed on Tuesday.
اضافة اعلان
Prosecutors in
Barcelona said in July they would
seek a prison sentence of more than eight years against the singer and a fine
of nearly 24 million euros, after she rejected a plea deal over accusations of
tax evasion.
They accuse the 45-year-old “Hips don’t Lie”
songstress of defrauding the Spanish tax office of 14.5 million euros on income
earned between 2012 and 2014.
Prosecutors say Shakira moved to Spain in 2011 when
her relationship with FC Barcelona defender
Gerard Pique became public but
maintained official tax residency in the Bahamas until 2015.
The couple, who have two children, announced their
separation in June.
On September 19, a Barcelona court ordered the singer
to stand trial for six tax crimes, according to a court ruling made public on
Tuesday.
In an interview published in Elle magazine last
week, Shakira said she was confident she had behaved correctly and did not owe
the Spanish tax office anything.
“These accusations are false,” she said.
“While Gerard and I were dating, I was on a world
tour. I spent more than 240 days outside Spain, so there was no way I qualified
as a resident,” she added.
“The Spanish tax authorities saw that I was dating a
Spanish citizen and started to salivate. It’s clear they wanted to go after
that money no matter what.”
Shakira’s lawyers have said that until 2014 she
earned most of her money from international tours, moved to Spain full time
only in 2015 and has met all her tax obligations.
The singer says she has paid 17.2 million euros to
Spanish tax authorities and has no outstanding debts.
She argues Spanish prosecutors are trying to claim
money she earned during her international tour and from her participation on
the show “The Voice”. She was a judge on the show in the
US, when she says she
was not yet resident in Spain.
A Barcelona court in May dismissed an appeal from
the singer to drop the charges.
Shakira was named in one of the largest ever leaks
of financial documents in October 2021, known as the “Pandora Papers”, among
public figures linked to offshore assets.
With her mix of Latin and Arabic rhythms and rock influence,
three-time Grammy winner
Shakira scored major global hits with songs such as
“Hips don’t Lie”, “Whenever, Wherever”, and “Waka Waka”, the official song of
the 2010 World Cup.
Read more Lifestyle
Jordan News
.jpg)
.jpg)
