The case centres on how a lot time Shakira spent in Spain between 2012 and 2014 (File)
Barcelona:
Colombian famous person Shakira goes on trial in Barcelona on Monday in a tax fraud case, with Spanish prosecutors in search of a jail time period of over eight years for the Grammy-winning singer. They accuse the 46-year-old of defrauding the Spanish state of 14.5 million euros ($15.7 million) on earnings earned between 2012 and 2014, expenses denied by the singer who says she solely moved to Spain full time in 2015.
The case centres on how a lot time the singer, whose hit singles embody “Hips Do not Lie”, “At any time when, Wherever” and the 2010 World Cup track “Waka Waka”, spent in Spain between 2012 and 2014.
Spanish authorities allege Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll — dubbed the Queen of Latin Pop — spent greater than half of that interval in Spain and due to this fact ought to have paid taxes within the nation.
They are saying she moved to Spain after her relationship with former FC Barcelona star defender Gerard Pique grew to become public in 2011, however maintained official tax residency within the Bahamas till 2015.
In its indictment, the prosecution claims that Shakira “used a set of firms” based mostly in tax havens “with the intention of not paying” tax in Spain.
Prosecutors are in search of a jail time period of eight years and two months, and a wonderful of practically 24 million euros ($24 million {dollars}) for the singer.
Shakira’s legal professionals say that till 2014, she was main a “nomadic life” and earned most of her cash from worldwide excursions, and that she moved completely to Barcelona simply earlier than the beginning of her second son in January 2015.
“I’ve paid every little thing they claimed I owed, even earlier than they filed a lawsuit. So, as of immediately, I owe zero to them,” the singer mentioned in an interview revealed in Elle journal in 2022.
Shakira introduced her cut up from Pique in June 2022 after a decade-long relationship, ending what had been one of many world’s most well-known movie star {couples}. She moved to Miami in April with their two sons, Milan and Sasha.
Her high-profile trial is about to get underway at a Barcelona courtroom at 10 am (0900 GMT). It’s anticipated to run till December 14, with the courtroom scheduled to listen to from practically 120 witnesses.
Whereas the singer is predicted to take the stand on the opening session of the trial, she might request permission from the courtroom to not be current on the remaining hearings.
Particulars of her personal life will seemingly emerge through the proceedings since Spanish prosecutors carried out a meticulous investigation to show their case.
They interviewed her neighbours, tracked her pictures on social networks, checked funds at hairdressers and even the well being clinic she attended throughout her being pregnant to show their accusation.
Questions on Shakira’s funds have been raised earlier than.
The Latina famous person was named in one of many largest-ever leaks of monetary paperwork in October 2021, often called the “Pandora Papers”, which revealed the wealth and tax avoidance methods of the worldwide wealthy, in her case referring to residence within the Bahamas.
Spain has lately cracked down on celebrities like soccer stars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo for not paying their full due in taxes.
Each gamers had been discovered responsible of evasion and obtained jail sentences that had been waived for first-time offenders.
Shakira’s former associate Pique was himself convicted of tax fraud in 2016 and later ordered to pay the tax workplace 2.1 million euros.
The singer picked up three awards on the Latin Grammy Awards in Seville in southern Spain on Thursday, together with for track of the 12 months and finest pop track for her collaboration with Argentine DJ Bizarrap on “Bzrp Music Periods, Vol. 53”.
The monitor takes swipes at her former associate Pique and features a reference to being left with a “debt to the tax workplace”. It has been performed virtually 1.5 billion occasions on Spotify and YouTube.
(Aside from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is revealed from a syndicated feed.)