The former King of Spain Juan Carlos obtained this Monday in London the authorization to appeal to the British justice against the refusal to grant him immunity in a case in which he is prosecuted for harassment by a former partner.
Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn, 58, a Danish businesswoman, is suing Juan Carlos for compensation for alleged acts of harassment. In March, the High Court in London ruled that Juan Carlos “was no longer a ‘sovereign’ or ‘head of state’ conferring personal immunity on him.”
A setback for the 84-year-old former king of Spain who lives in exile in the United Arab Emirates, while the Spanish justice system had dismissed three investigations in early March that singled him out for corruption and embezzlement.
Abdicated in 2014
According to the documents presented by the plaintiff’s lawyers, she had an “intimate sentimental relationship” with the former monarch between 2004 and 2009. After their breakup, they remained friends before Juan Carlos sought to rekindle their relationship.
When the businesswoman “clearly indicated her refusal”, the former king adopted “harassing behavior”, he says, accusing her of “organizing” a series of malicious acts, causing him “anguish and anxiety”.
Juan Carlos is surrounded by scandals and revelations about his lavish lifestyle in Spain, where he was a central figure in the democratic transition following the death of dictator Franco in 1975. He abdicated in 2014 in favor of his son Felipe VI, who distanced himself.
Source: BFM TV
