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| Photo Credit: AP. |
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — A Spanish judge on Tuesday approved a trial for Colombian pop singer Shakira on charges of tax fraud.
Spanish
prosecutors accused the entertainer in 2018 of failing to pay 14.5 million
euros ($13.9 million) in taxes on income earned between 2012 and 2014.
Prosecutors are seeking an eight-year prison sentence and a hefty fine if she is
found guilty of tax evasion.
Shakira, 45,
has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and rejected a deal with authorities to
avoid going to trial. Her public relations firm has said that she has already
paid all that she owed and an additional 3 million euros ($2.8 million) in
interest.
The court
based in the town of Esplugues de Llobregat near Barcelona said that Shakira
will face six counts of tax fraud. The date for the trial has yet to be set.
The case
hinges on where Shakira lived during 2012-14. Prosecutors in Barcelona have
alleged the Grammy winner spent more than half of that period in Spain and
should have paid taxes in the country, even though her official residence was
in the Bahamas.
Shakira,
whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, has been linked to Spain
since she started dating soccer player Gerard Pique. The couple, who have two
children, used to live together in Barcelona but recently ended their 11-year
relationship.
Spain has
cracked down on soccer stars like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo over the
past decade for not paying their full due in taxes. They were found guilty of
evasion but both avoided prison time thanks to a provision that allows a judge
to waive sentences under two years in length for first-time offenders.