Shakirais facing a second tax fraud case in Spain.
Almost 10 months after the singer, 46, was ordered tostand trialin her $13.9 million tax evasion case in the country, she has now been hit with another investigation.
According toReuters, a Spanish court said Thursday that it has started a new investigation against the Colombian star linked to alleged fraud on personal income tax and wealth tax in 2018. The court, which is in the town of Esplugues de Llobregat near Barcelona, said it had no information on how much money was in question, according to theAssociated Press.
Shakira on July 6, 2023.Daniele Venturelli/Getty Images
Daniele Venturelli/Getty Images
A representative for Shakira told PEOPLE in a statement Thursday that she “defends having always acted in accordance with the law and under the advice of the best tax experts. She is now focused on her life as an artist in Miami and is confident that there will be a favorable resolution of her tax issues.”
The singer lived in Spain when her soccer player ex Gerard Piqué was playing for Barcelona.Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic
“As it is publicly known, and as the Spanish Treasury was officially notified, Shakira is now living in Miami, so she must be notified personally at her new address, in strict accordance with the provisions of the Law.”
The “Hips Don’t Lie” singer is expected to stand trial in the autumn for the first case, according toEl Pais.
The performer, who now lives in Miami, shares two sons with Piqué.Shakira/Instagram
In July 2022, Shakira rejected a settlement offer in the case, according toReuters, which would have settled the case out of court. She has denied any wrongdoing, and her public relations firm maintains that she has paid what she owed plus $3 million in interest, per the AP.
It was in September 2022 that Spanish authorities cleared the way for prosecutors to pursue further legal action against the star, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll.
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The first fraud case against Shakira hinges on where she lived during the period of 2012-2014. The performer alleges that she spent most of her time in her primary residence, in the Bahamas, while prosecutors will aim to prove she spent the majority of the period in Spain.
Shakiraleft Barcelona for Miamiwith her children in April, leaving behind the home city of her Spanish ex,Gerard Piqué.
Shakira shares two boys with the former Barcelona footballer, 36:Sasha, 8, andMilan, 10.
The couple, whoannounced their separation in a joint statementin June 2022, raised their children in the beachside city in Spain’s Catalonia region.
Announcing she was departing Barcelona, Shakira, who called the city home for eight years, posted afarewell messageon Instagram saying she is leaving so she can start “a new chapter.”
An English translation of the post read, “I settled in Barcelona to give my sons stability, the same that we are now looking for in another corner of the world besides family, friends and the sea. Today we started a new chapter in the search for happiness.”
TheGrammy Award-winning singerthen thanked “everyone who surfed many waves with me in Barcelona, the city where I learned that without a doubt, friendship is longer than love.”
source: people.com
