Shakira’s legal troubles are far from over as she faces a second tax fraud case in Spain.
A new investigation into the singer’s finances is set to be launched, a Spanish court announced on Thursday, July 20, according to Reuters. The outlet reported that the probe will look into alleged income and wealth tax fraud in 2018.
Shakira, 46, is already set to stand trial in November for a separate tax fraud case over the allegation that she failed to pay $13.9 million in taxes on income earned between 2012 and 2014. Prosecutors in Spain first pursued legal action against the entertainer in 2018, claiming that Shakira had resided in the Catalonia region from 2012 to 2014 and therefore owed taxes to Spain, despite her official residence at the time being listed in the Bahamas.
Shakira has repeatedly denied the allegations. “I didn’t spend 183 days per year [in Spain] at that time at all,” she told Elle in September 2022. “I was busy fulfilling my professional commitments around the world. Second, I’ve paid everything they claimed I owed, even before they filed a lawsuit. So, as of today, I owe zero to them.”
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The “Hips Don’t Lie” musician added: “It is well known that the Spanish tax authorities do this often, not only with celebrities like me, it also happens unjustly to the regular taxpayer. It’s just their style.”
If the Grammy winner is found guilty, she could face serious consequences. In July 2022, Spanish prosecutors announced that they are seeking an eight-year prison term as well as a 23 million euro fine.
Shakira has lived in Spain off and on for years. In 2012, she purchased a home in Barcelona with then-boyfriend Gerard Piqué. The duo — who share sons Milan, 10, and Sasha, 8 — split in June 2022 after 12 years together amid reports that Shakira had caught Piqué, 36, having an affair. Although the pair did not address the claims at the time, they confirmed their breakup that same month.
“We regret to confirm that we are separating,” the exes wrote in a joint statement to Reuters. “For the wellbeing of our children, who are our highest priority, we ask that you respect their privacy.”
In February, Shakira opened up about how the breakup had forced her to grow.
“When a woman has to face [hardships] in life, she comes out stronger. When you come out stronger it means you’re learning to recognize your weaknesses and accept your vulnerability,” she said in Spanish during an interview with Enrique Acevedo of Canal Estrellas. “I feel complete — because I feel like I can depend on myself and I have two kids who depend on me.”
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Shakira took another big step in her healing journey in April when she announced her decision to move away from Barcelona with her sons.
“I settled in Barcelona to give my children a stability, the same we are now looking for in another corner of the world next to family, friends and the sea,” she wrote in Spanish alongside an Instagram photo of the famous city. “Today we start a new chapter in the pursuit of their happiness. Thank you to everyone who surfed alongside my many waves there in Barcelona, the city where I learned that friendship is certainly longer than love.”
Although Shakira’s sons are her priority in the wake of the split, she and NBA star Jimmy Butler have fueled dating speculation in recent months after being spotted together on numerous occasions. Most recently, Shakira and Butler, 33, were seen arriving at London’s Novikov Restaurant & Bar earlier this month. A source exclusively told Us Weekly on Friday, July 14, that the pair “have been out a few times” but it’s “too early to tell if there’s long-term potential there.”
The insider added that the twosome’s 13-year age gap “doesn’t bother” Shakira “whatsoever,” emphasizing that “Jimmy makes Shakira smile and she feels happy spending time with him.”
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Piqué, for his part, has moved on with girlfriend Clara Chia Marti, whom he was first linked to in August 2022. In March, the retired athlete told El Pais that he was “very happy” with his life. “I keep doing what I want,” he said. “The day I die, I will look back and hope I have always done what I wanted. I want to be faithful to myself. I’m not going to spend money cleaning up my image.”
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