A new multi-million pound tax fraud probe is being faced by Colombian singer Shakira in Spain, as confirmed by a court today.
The 46-year-old ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ singer is set to stand trial later this year in a separate case involving over 14.5 million euros (£12.5 million) in unpaid back taxes for the years 2012-2014.
The prosecution is seeking a potential eight-year prison sentence for the star, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak.
Shakira has denied any wrongdoing and declared her intention to combat the charges in court rather than reaching a last-minute agreement with Spanish state prosecutors.
The latest investigation, concerning the tax year 2018, will be overseen by a judge at a court in Esplugues de Llobregat, the same court that initiated the previous investigation leading to the singer being ordered to face trial.
Authorities have confirmed the reports, putting Shakira once again under the spotlight.
A spokesperson for Catalonia’s High Court of Justice stated, ‘Court of Instruction Number 2 in Esplugues de Llobregat has initiated a procedure following a complaint by prosecutors against the singer Shakira for suspected tax crimes related to income tax and wealth tax for the Spanish tax year of 2018.’
The mother of two has not yet issued an official response and her legal team has indicated they will comment later in the day.
The prosecutor did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the new case. Shakira’s legal team said they would comment later in the day.
Before she left Barcelona for Miami at the beginning of April, Shakira criticized Spanish tax authorities following the revelation of her impending trial for alleged offenses committed between 2012 and 2014.
She accused the Spanish Treasury of using ‘unacceptable methods to damage her reputation and force her to come to a settlement agreement,’ asserting that she was being ‘persecuted.’
Shakira made it clear that she had no intention of making any last-minute plea bargain deals and intended to go to trial.
A spokesperson for the Colombian artist also emphasized her belief that the country’s tax authorities were accusing her of lying about residing outside of Spain ‘without evidence’ for the years she had been charged with tax fraud.
According to reports, she had spent 242 days in Spain in 2012, 212 days in 2013, and 243 days in 2014 before being indicted with six counts of tax fraud for those years.
A statement released by Shakira’s Barcelona-based publicists LLYC last November, authorized by Shakira, stated: ‘Shakira is a law-abiding taxpayer who has never had tax issues in any other jurisdiction.
‘She relied on reputable advisors such as PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
‘She never exceeded the 183-day requirement for tax residency in Spain.
‘In the absence of substantial evidence to support the allegations against her, she has been subject to unwarranted persecution, both in the legal and media spheres, to damage her reputation and pressure her to reach a settlement.’
Shakira’s tax trial is scheduled to commence on November 20, and will be conducted over 12 sessions.
