We know that Shakira’s hips don’t lie, but what about her tax records? It seems that a Spanish judge has at least reasonable doubt that they might. He’s recommended that the Colombian singer stand trial for potential tax evasion. Things are not looking up for Shakira and it seems her accountant may have some explaining to do. If not, we may get a chance to see if Shakira trying to pull off the “OITNB” look.
$17.2 Million Missing From The Books!
It’s not just a small debt that Shakira could have with the Spanish authorities. According to court documents, she potentially failed to pay around $17.2 million in taxes. This steaming from the money that the singer made from 2012 to 2014. Today, a judge in the Spanish region of Catalonia, where the singer lives, put out an official statement regarding the case that reads,
“The documents (…) annexed to the lawsuit are sufficient evidence of wrongdoing to continue with the proceedings,”
Super productive sessions with the amazing Poo Bear and Sasha Sirota.
Had an awesome time with you guys! pic.twitter.com/v5ttUxDp7X— Shakira (@shakira) July 27, 2021
Her Money Manager Is Going To Have Some Serious Explaining To Do
Shakira was one of the many famous people who showed up in the Wikileaks “Panama Papers” scandal. The singer had an official residence in the country and was allegedly moving her money through offshore accounts to prevent something like this from happening. It’s unclear whether her current legal drama stems directly from this leak or not.
What is clear is that she had a scheme set up to be able to move the money around and avoid this type of thing from happening. At one point, someone screwed up! Was it her money manager? Was it her directly? Shakira will surely have some finger pointing as things start getting sorted out.
What The Authorities Are Saying
In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes, said Benjamin Franklin. That’s a phrase that actually applies to the Spanish constitution as well. Even with Shakira’s off-shore account in place, Spanish laws require that anyone who lives more than half of the year in the country pay their respective taxes. Shakira spends way more than half of the year in Barcelona since that’s where her husband soccer player Gerard Pique works. Just based on that fact alone it seems pretty clear she owes some cash!
What’s The Worst-Case Scenario?
The worst-case scenario is that Shakira ends up in jail! However, judging from recent instances where high-profile celebs have had issues with the Spanish IRS, that’s probably not likely. At the end of the day, she’ll probably end up paying a very substantial fine back to the government. Just like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi ultimately did. Even if she’s put on trial, most of the real action is probably going to be happening behind the scenes. Where her lawyers are going to be working hard to cut a deal with the government. Is Shakira going to be in an orange jumpsuit? Maybe in a new music video, but not likely in a Spanish jail!
The #DontWaitUp video was so much fun to shoot, dancing and surfing all night long! Thanks to all those who worked so hard made it happen. I hope you guys enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it!
📼 https://t.co/VIiztX2JYZ pic.twitter.com/FY36LmcQNy— Shakira (@shakira) July 16, 2021
