Shakira reaches last-minute settlement deal with prosecutors hours before bombshell trial
Kit Roberts
Featured Image Credit: Patricia J. Garcinuno/WireImage/Getty / David Oller/Europa Press via Getty Images
Shakira has reached a deal with prosecutors ahead of her tax fraud trial.
Shakira told the presiding judge on the first day of her Spanish tax fraud trial that she had accepted the agreement reached with prosecutors.
The Colombian singer faced six counts of failing to pay the Spanish government €14.5 million (about $15.8m) in taxes between 2012 and 2014.
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In a statement, the singer said that she "always strived to do what's right and set a positive example for others."
She said that her legal representatives had been 'confident' that the court would rule in her favour.
However, she said that she had wished to pursue a deal, saying it was "with the best interest of my kids at heart, who do not want to see their mom sacrifice her personal wellbeing in this fight."
Shakira has also denied any wrongdoing. In an interview last year, she called the accusations 'false'.
She added: “First of all, I didn’t spend 183 days per year at that time at all. I was busy fulfilling my professional commitments around the world.
"Second, I’ve paid everything they claimed I owed, even before they filed a lawsuit. So, as of today I owe zero to them."
The charges the singer faced carried a penalty which could have included jail time.