A Spanish judge has ordered pop star Shakira to stand trial for allegedly failing to pay $13.9 million in taxes on income she earned between 2012 and 2014.
Prosecutors will demand an eight-year prison term and a hefty fine if they manage to win a conviction for the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer, who has denied any wrongdoing.
The 45-year-old artist has maintained that during the two-year period, she has lived in Spain only less than half the time. She has rejected a plea deal with the prosecutors that would have saved her a trial.
Her public relations firm has said she has already paid everything she owed and another $3 million — or $2.8 million — in interest.
The court in the town of Esplugues de Llobregat near Barcelona said Shakira will face six charges of tax fraud.
The date for the trial has yet to be set.
The case depends on where Shakira lived in 2012-14. Prosecutors in Barcelona have alleged that 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 began dating footballer Gerard Pique.
Piqué, who plays for La Liga outfit Barcelona, is currently dating a 23-year-old public relations student, Clara Chia Marti.
The couple, who have two children, used to live together in Barcelona but recently ended their 11-year relationship.
Spain has been cracking down on football stars like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo over the past decade for failing to pay their entire tax debt.
They were found guilty of evasion but both avoided jail time thanks to a provision that allows a judge to suspend sentences of less than two years for first-time offenders.
With Post wires