Shakira is charged with failing to pay the Spanish government 14.5 million euros in taxes between 2012 and 2014
MADRID – Prosecutors in Spain announced on Friday that they will ask a court to sentence Colombian pop singer Shakira to eight years and two months in prison if she is found guilty in her scheduled trial over alleged tax fraud.
Shakira, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, is accused of failing to pay the Spanish government €14.5 million in taxes between 2012 and 2014 (million dollars).
The indictment contains six charges against Shakira. This week, the singer rejected a settlement agreement offered by prosecutors and opted for a trial. A date for the hearing has not yet been set.
Shakira, 45, “is convinced of her innocence and decides to put the matter in the hands of the law.” Shakira’s PR team says the singer has always fulfilled her tax obligations. It states that the artist has deposited the amount that she allegedly owes, including 3 million euros in interest.
Spanish prosecutors indicted the singer in 2018. The case depends on where she lived between 2012 and 2014. Prosecutors claim it was mostly in Spain, although Shakira’s official residence was in the Bahamas. Shakira has two children with Barcelona soccer star Gerard Piqué. The couple used to live together in Barcelona but recently ended their 11-year relationship.