Spanish king’s sister prosecuted for fraud

Spanish King Felipe and his sister Cristina pose after attending an Easter mass, photo by Reuters/Enrique Calvo

On this photo, Spanish King Felipe VI and his sister Cristina pose after attending an Easter mass. Her royal highness Cristina is second from left in a red dress, King Felipe is third from left.

Translated from NOS TV in the Netherlands today:

Spanish Princess Cristina will definitely be prosecuted for tax fraud. According to the public prosecution service, the evidence is sufficient to proceed to prosecution, Spanish media report. Officially, the public prosecution cannot communicate about the case.

The princess and her husband are accused of tax fraud of millions of euros. Cristina is the first member of the royal family who will appear before a court since the Spanish monarchy was restored in 1975.

The princess was heard in recent weeks by a number of judges. …

For tax fraud there is a maximum penalty of eight years in prison in Spain.

Sports foundation

According to the public prosecutor, the princess and her husband have evaded tax twice. The husband of Cristina, Inaki Urdangarin, is said to have put millions of euros in government subsidies into his own pockets via a sports organization. The princess was on the board of that foundation and was the co-owner of a company that helped in the fraud.

Cristina, the sister of King Felipe was also previously indicted for money laundering, but those charges were withdrawn at the end of last year.