Spain: Prosecutors probe role of former king in Saudi Arabia deal
Prosecutors in Spain's highest court are investigating
whether former King Juan Carlos received millions of dollars in kickbacks from
Saudi Arabia during the construction of a high-speed railway there by a Spanish
consortium.
A Monday statement from the general prosecutor's office
called the probe one of "undeniable technical complexity".
The Supreme Court investigation will centre on developments
after mid-2014.
That covers the second phase of the 2011 contract for the
bullet train between the Saudi cities of Medina and Mecca - the so-called
"AVE of the desert" in reference to the acronym for high-speed trains
in Spain.
The date marks the moment when Carlos, marred by several
scandals, passed on the throne to his son, who became King Felipe VI.
By abdicating after nearly 40 years on the throne, Carlos
lost the protection granted by Spain's constitution to the head of state.
'Institutional significance'
The prosecutor's statement said given the
"institutional significance", the investigation would be charged to
one of the Supreme Court's chief prosecutors and three assistants.
Although Carlos's finances have been questioned in Spanish
media for years, there have so far been zero legal implications for the king
emeritus.
Spanish legislators have rejected at least two proposals
since the first allegations emerged to open parliamentary investigations.
Swiss prosecutors are also investigating an account operated
for Carlos to which millions were allegedly transferred by Saudi Arabia's late
King Abdullah.
In March, King Felipe VI renounced any future inheritance
from his father after The Telegraph newspaper in the United Kingdom reported
earlier this year that the current monarch had been named as a beneficiary for
some of that money.
Felipe denied any knowledge of the fund.
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