Panama links to besotted, corrupt ex- monarch
The scandals surrounding King Emeritus Juan Carlos I of Spain now undercover in the United Arab Emirates have dragged Panama's shadowy financial dealings back into the world headlines which it once filled with the Panama Papers,
The situation tarnishes the role he played in Spain's
transition to democracy, after the dictatorship of General Franco and
represents a deep wound for the monarchy, in the eyes of its citizens.
On August 3, the Spanish Royal Family guardedly
announced his decision to move away
from the country due to the
backlash "certain past events
With his self-imposed exile, the 82-year-old ex-monarch
informed the Royal Household that he was leaving the country to " help
facilitate the exercise of the functions " of his son, King Felipe VI.
But his hide and exit set off alarms and it took weeks of guesswork trying to
figure outhis whereabouts with Portugal,
the Dominican Republic, and Abu Dhabi, among the destinations cited
until on August 17 the United Arab Emirates was as the bolt hole of the
now-disgraced ex-king
A publication of the Swiss newspaper Tribune de Geneve
records that a special prosecutor in Geneva is investigating alleged
commissions of more than 6.7 billion euros in the award to a consortium of
Spanish companies of a high-speed line Medina-Mecca (Saudi Arabia ).
The newspaper also cited that one of the donations of $100
million, from King Abdul Al Saud, went to an account of the Swiss bank
Mirabaud, belonging to a Panamanian Foundation named Lucum, whose sole
beneficiary would be the king emeritus
and was created to funnel money
to Switzerland
The Swiss prosecutor's office is also investigating the
purchase in 2015 of a mansion in the United Kingdom, by Corinna Larsen, the
ex-lover of Juan Carlos I, three years after receiving 65 million euros from
the king emeritus, according to European media.
Larsen is a Danish-born business consultant who told
prosecutors in Geneva that she paid $7.8 million dollars for the Chyknell Hall
Estate, near Bridgnorth, west of England and that she spent a similar amount on
the renovation of the residence.
The mansion appears under the name of Jade Trust, a
Panamanian foundation whose beneficiary is Larsen's 13-years-old son.
Since 2018, Larsen has been under investigation for alleged
money laundering, according to El País.
Meanwhile, the prosecutor in Geneva is investigating the
acquisition of the mansion and the "opaque Panama structure" used in the operation, after
receiving the gift from the ex-monarch
The mansion with 11 bedrooms, a library, swimming pool and
cricket ground sits on an 81-hectare estate.
Comments
Post a Comment