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Pop star Shakira has reached a deal with tax authorities in Spain, avoiding a €14.5m trial on the morning it was due to begin.

The Colombian pop star attended court on Monday and agreed to pay a fine of €7m (£6.1m). She waved and blew a kiss to bystanders as she walked in ahead of the short hearing.

After answering “yes” to confirm acknowledgement of failing to pay the Spanish government taxes, she also received a suspended three-year sentence, the AP news agency reported.

In a statement sent to Sky News, Shakira said she had “always strived to do what’s right and set a positive example for others” but now wants to “move past the stress”.

Colombian singer Shakira and her lawyer Pau Molins arrive at court for her trial facing allegations of tax fraud in Barcelona, Spain November 20, 2023. REUTERS/Albert Gea
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Shakira pictured outside court in Barcelona this morning

The agreement means a trial which had been due to include dozens of witnesses, and was expected to last several weeks, has now been called off – and prosecutors have dropped their demand for the star to be jailed for eight years.

The Hips Don’t Lie singer said her lawyers had been “confident” the court would have ruled in her favour following a trial.

However, she said she took the decision to resolve the matter beforehand “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, 46, has two sons with her ex-partner, footballer Gerard Pique.

She had faced six counts of failing to pay the Spanish government €14.5m (about £12.7m) in taxes between 2012 and 2014.

The case centred around where she was living at the time, and she had denied any wrongdoing. Her defence team had argued she had not spent more than 60 days a year in Spain during the period in question and so should not have been considered a fiscal resident.

‘Winning is getting my time back’

In her statement, Shakira said she had sought “the advice of the world’s preeminent tax authorities PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited and Ernst & Young Global Limited”, her advisers throughout the process.

“Unfortunately, and despite these efforts, tax authorities in Spain pursued a case against me as they have against many professional athletes and other high-profile individuals, draining those people’s energy, time, and tranquility for years at a time,” she said.

“I need to move past the stress and emotional toll of the last several years and focus on the things I love – my kids and all the opportunities to come in my career, including my upcoming world tour and my new album, both of which I am extremely excited about.

“I admire tremendously those who have fought these injustices to the end, but for me, today, winning is getting my time back for my kids and my career.”

Spain has cracked down on football stars such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo for tax offences in the last decade.

The former Barcelona and Real Madrid stars were found guilty of evasion but both avoided jail after their sentences were suspended.

From Grammy wins to court

Sergio Ramos and Shakira at the Latin Grammy Awards. Pic: AP
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Shakira attended the Latin Grammy Awards at the weekend. Pic: AP

Shakira’s deal comes after the star was named one of the big winners at the Latin Grammys at the weekend, taking home three awards.

She was presented with one award by Sergio Ramos, former Spanish international teammate of Pique and defender for Real Madrid, rivals of Pique’s former club Barcelona.

Prosecutors announced in September that Shakira would also face separate charges of €6.7m tax evasion in Spain, relating to a period in 2018. Sky News understands this case is still ongoing but her lawyers are confident of a resolution.

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Police should focus on ‘tackling real crime’, No 10 says, after Met Police halts non-crime hate probes

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Police should focus on 'tackling real crime', No 10 says, after Met Police halts non-crime hate probes

Officers should focus on “tackling real crime and policing the streets”, Downing Street has said – after the Metropolitan Police announced it is no longer investigating non-crime hate incidents.

The announcement by Britain’s biggest force on Monday came after it emerged Father Ted creator Graham Linehan will face no further action after he was arrested at Heathrow Airport on suspicion of inciting violence over three posts he made on X about transgender issues.

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Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman said police forces will “get the clarity they need to keep our streets safe” when a review of non-crime hate incidents by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and College of Policing is published in December.

“The police should focus on tackling real crime and policing the streets,” he said.

“The home secretary has asked that this review be completed at pace, working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing.

“We look forward to receiving its findings as soon as possible, so that the other forces get the clarity they need to keep our streets safe.”

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He said the government will “always work with police chiefs to make sure criminal law and guidance reflects the common-sense approach we all want to see in policing”.

After Linehan’s September arrest, Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said officers were in “an impossible position” when dealing with statements made online.

File pic: iStock
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File pic: iStock

On Monday, a Met spokesperson said the commissioner had been “clear he doesn’t believe officers should be policing toxic culture war debates, with current laws and rules on inciting violence online leaving them in an impossible position”.

The force said the decision to no longer investigate non-crime hate incidents would now “provide clearer direction for officers, reduce ambiguity and enable them to focus on matters that meet the threshold for criminal investigations”.

Justice minister Sarah Sackman said it is “welcome news” the Met will now be focusing on crimes such as phone snatching, mugging, antisocial behaviour and violent crime.

Asked if other forces should follow the Met’s decision, she said: “I think that other forces need to make the decisions that are right for their communities.

“But I’m sure that communities up and down the country would want that renewed focus on violent crime, on antisocial behaviour, and on actual hate crime.”

The Met said it will still record non-crime hate incidents to use as “valuable pieces of intelligence to establish potential patterns of behaviour or criminality”.

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Bob Vylan on ‘death, death to the IDF’ chant: ‘I’d do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays’

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Bob Vylan on 'death, death to the IDF' chant: 'I'd do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays'

Bob Vylan’s frontman has said he does not regret chanting “death, death to the IDF” at Glastonbury – and would do it again.

The outspoken punk duo sparked controversy with their performance at the festival in June, with the broadcast also leading to fierce criticism of the BBC.

But speaking on The Louis Theroux podcast, Bobby Vylan said he stood by the chant, adding: “I’d do it again tomorrow, twice on Sundays.”

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The US condemned the act’s “hateful tirade” and revoked their visas, with several festivals cancelling their upcoming appearances.

Vylan claimed this backlash is “minimal” compared with what the people of Palestine are going through – with many losing members of their family or forced to flee their homes.

He said: “If I have their support, they’re the people that I’m doing it for, they’re the people that I’m being vocal for, then what is there to regret. Oh, because I’ve upset some right-wing politician or some right-wing media?”

The musician revealed he was taken aback by the uproar caused by the chant, which was described by the prime minister as “appalling hate speech”.

Vylan added: “It wasn’t like we came off stage, and everybody was like (gasps). It’s just normal. We come off stage. It’s normal. Nobody thought anything. Nobody. Even staff at the BBC were like: ‘That was fantastic! We loved that!'”

A spokesperson at Mindhouse Productions – which was founded by Theroux and produces The Louis Theroux podcast – told Sky News: “Louis is a journalist with a long history of speaking to controversial figures who may divide opinion. We would suggest people watch or listen to the interview in its entirety to get the full context of the conversation.”

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Calls for Bob Vylan concert to be cancelled

‘The response was disproportionate’

The BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit has since found that the broadcast of Bob Vylan’s set breached editorial standards related to harm and offence.

Theroux asked Vylan what he meant by chanting “death to the IDF” – with the musician replying: “It’s so unimportant, and the response to it was so disproportionate.

“What is important is the conditions that exist to allow that chant to even take place on that stage. And I mean, the conditions that exist in Palestine. Where the Palestinian people are being killed at an alarming rate.”

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Pic: PA
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Pic: PA

He said he wanted an end to the oppression that the Palestinian people are facing – but argued chanting “end, end the IDF” wouldn’t have caught on because it doesn’t rhyme.

“We are there to entertain, we are there to play music,” Vylan added. “I am a lyricist. ‘Death, death to IDF’ rhymes. Perfect chant.”

He went on to reject claims that their set had contributed to a spike in antisemitic incidents that were reported a couple of days later.

“I don’t think I have created an unsafe atmosphere for the Jewish community. If there were large numbers of people going out and going like ‘Bob Vylan made me do this’. I might go, ‘oof, I’ve had a negative impact here’.”

Vylan’s conversation with Theroux was recorded on 1 October – before the Manchester synagogue attack, and prior to the ceasefire in Gaza coming into effect.

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Gavin Plumb: Man jailed for plotting to rape and murder Holly Willoughby loses appeal against life sentence

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Gavin Plumb: Man jailed for plotting to rape and murder Holly Willoughby loses appeal against life sentence

A security guard jailed for plotting to kidnap, rape and murder TV star Holly Willoughby has lost an appeal against his life sentence.

Gavin Plumb was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 16 years last year after being convicted of soliciting murder and encouraging or assisting others to rape and kidnap.

A trial at Chelmsford Crown Court heard that police found bottles of chloroform and an “abduction kit” with cable ties when officers raided the 38-year-old’s flat in Harlow, Essex.

Plumb’s kidnap plan involved attempting to “ambush” Willoughby at her family home, jurors heard.

Plumb argued in his defence that it was just online chat and fantasy.

Police believed Plumb was an 'imminent threat' to Holly Willoughby. Pic: PA
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Police believed Plumb was an ‘imminent threat’ to Holly Willoughby. Pic: PA

He was caught after an undercover police officer in the US infiltrated an online group called Abduct Lovers.

He told the officer, who used the pseudonym David Nelson, that he was “definitely serious” about his plot to kidnap the former This Morning host, leaving him with the impression that there was an “imminent threat” to Willoughby.

Due to the officer’s concern over Plumb’s post, evidence was passed to the FBI, who then contacted police in the UK.

Willoughby, who asked for her victim personal statement to be private, waived her right to anonymity in connection with the charge against Plumb of assisting or encouraging rape.

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