Even if there are no charges against Juan Carlos, the investigators have found “irregularities” in the financial management. Spain’s head of government is now demanding answers from the ex-king.
Madrid – Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has asked former king Juan Carlos, who is living in exile, to comment on past misconduct.
The 84-year-old owes the Spanish people an explanation, the socialist told journalists on the flight to Latvia, the Europa Press news agency reported.
The previous evening, the royal family had published a letter from the former king, in which he announced his intention to continue living in Abu Dhabi for the time being, but to come home “more often” to visit. In the letter to his son, Juan Carlos expresses regret about some “earlier events” in his “private life”, but also claims “legitimate pride” in his contribution to the democratic coexistence of Spain.
Sánchez reacted publicly for the first time to information from the judiciary from last week, when the Attorney General’s Office had stopped all investigations against the old king. The investigating authority had found numerous “irregularities” in the financial conduct of the ex-king. However, they would not be charged because of the statute of limitations or the legal inviolability of the former monarch until his abdication in 2014 and because of back taxes. dpa
