Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, July 29: Spanish prosecutors announced on Friday that they would seek a prison term of more than eight years for international music sensation Shakira after she rejected a plea agreement in connection with allegations of tax evasion.
The 45-year-old singer will also be required to pay a fine of over 24 million euros ($24.5 million) after being accused by Barcelona prosecutors of defrauding the Spanish tax authority of 14.5 million euros in income between 2012 and 2014.
#BREAKING Spain prosecutors call for eight-year prison sentence for Shakira over tax fraud pic.twitter.com/Wf3eoJD7Vu
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) July 29, 2022
Shakira, whose albums have sold more than 60 million copies worldwide, rejected a plea deal on Wednesday, saying in a statement released through her attorneys that she was ‘absolutely certain of her innocence’ and had chosen to take the case to trial, ‘confident’ that her innocence would be established.
A trial date has not yet been established, nor has a formal referral to court been published.
Shakira, according to the prosecution, relocated to Spain in 2011 after her relationship with FC Barcelona defender Gerard Pique became well-known, yet she continued to file her taxes in the Bahamas until 2015. The couple has together announced their separation in June.
Between 2013 and 2014, Shakira appeared on a singing competition programme.
Her attorneys claim that up until 2014, she mostly made her money from overseas tours, only permanently relocated to Spain in 2015, and has complied with all tax requirements.
She claims that she has paid 17.2 million euros in taxes to the Spanish government and that she hasn’t owed the Treasury anything in “many years.” In May, a Barcelona judge denied the singer’s request to have the accusations dropped.
