Spanish prosecutors charge Shakira with tax evasion

MADRID - Nearly a year after reports emerged of  Shakira's tax evasion investigation, the pop star has reportedly been officially charged.

Spanish prosecutors charged the Colombian star with tax evasion on Friday, according to the Associated Press. Singer Shakira has been accused of allegedly not paying more than $16 million in taxes between 2012 and 2014.

Spanish prosecutors file tax evasion charges against Shakira https://t.co/l4PF6AC4mY pic.twitter.com/IV0ToOjSf6

— WFAA (@wfaa) December 15, 2018

According to reports, the case revolves around Shakira's place of residence during those years. The charges reportedly claim that, while she reported the Bahamas as her official residence, she was allegedly spending more time in Spain with partner Gerard Piqué and their family.

The “Hips Don’t Lie” singer and Pique have been a couple since the start of the decade and have two children.

Their firstborn son Milan was born in Barcelona in 2013. According to the report, she officially moved to Barcelona in 2015. In the "Paradise Papers" leak least year, Shakira was listed as a resident of the Bahamas, according to The Guardian.

Shakira's lawyer said at the time that the artist had lived in various places "throughout her professional career and, in every case, has fully met the laws of all the jurisdictions where she has resided."

It is the latest case of a high-profile foreigner with links to top-level Spanish soccer being accused of avoiding tax while living there.

Earlier investigations looked into Pique’s Argentinian Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi and Portuguese international Cristiano Ronaldo, who left Real Madrid for Juventus this year.