SPANISH Soprano Montserrat Caballé has been sentenced to six months in jail and a fine of just over a quarter of a million euros for tax fraud, which she has admited to.
The opera singer – best-known outside of her native country for her duet, Barcelona, with Freddie Mercury, which was the opening song for the Olympics in the north-eastern city – has reached a plea-bargaining agreement with the prosecution through her solicitor.
In exchange for pleading guilty to avoiding half a million euros in taxes in 2010 – which she has already refunded with interest – her jail term has been cut to six months and she will pay €72,202 to the tax authorities as compensation plus €254,231 as a fine, which is exactly half the amount of her unpaid tax.
This would have been 65%, the amount normally payable when tax evaders choose to pay off what they owed in order to gain a more lenient punishment.
Given that her sentence is less than two years and is for a first offence, under Spanish law she will not have to serve it unless and until she commits any other crime.
She will not be entitled to any tax breaks, public funds or financial benefits for the next 18 months.
Sra Caballé, 82, was allowed to testify from home rather than travelling to court, for health reasons, and her only words – spoken via video conference whilst sitting at her dining-room table in a coat and scarf – were, “yes, I agree,” when the prosecution read out details of their pact and asked whether she would confirm her acceptance.
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com