LINE.- Part of the fortune of the royal family of Mnaco was deposited in tax havens, according to an investigation published by the French newspaper The world based on the notebooks of the man who was his administrator for decades, now fallen from grace.
The newspaper is based on notes taken by Claude Palmero, administrator of the royal estate for more than two decades.
Claude Palmero worked for Sovereign Prince Rainier III and his wife, the American actress Grace Kelly, and then for his son, Prince Albert, who acceded to the throne in 2005.
Palmero, who had held the position since 2001, when he replaced his father, was forced to resign last year and has initiated legal action against the monarch.
The world He indicated that according to Palmero’s notebooks, which he took with him, some monarchy funds have been for years in Panama and the British Virgin Islands, two tax havens.
Jean-Michel Darrois, Prince Albert’s lawyer, confirmed to AFP that companies were indeed created offshore in Panama in 1984 during the time of Rainier III.
But according to the lawyer, Albert II had asked his administrator several times to resolve the situation, which he did not do.
“Since Palmero’s replacement, all this is being liquidated,” said Darrois, who indicated that in 2002, before Alberto’s accession to the throne, companies were created in the British Virgin Islands.
The former administrator’s lawyer, Marie-Alix Canu-Bernard, asserted that he never did anything without the knowledge of those who hired him. “On the contrary, everything was always done in perfect agreement with them and in their strictest interest,” she stated.
The royal family’s motivations for placing funds abroad are unclear since Monaco does not apply income or wealth taxes.
But sources close to the royal family suggest that the objective would have been to prevent the press or anyone else from being aware of their finances.
Mutual accusations in Monaco
Monaco, the second smallest country in the world after the Vatican, has been ruled by the Grimaldi dynasty since 1297.
In recent decades, the tax-free principality has attracted celebrities and wealthy individuals, driving up real estate prices in this small 2km2 territory.
Since his dismissal, Palmero has tried unsuccessfully to sue the royal family through Monaco’s legal system and this month filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, believing he is not receiving a fair trial in the principality.
Palmero’s lawyers, Canu-Bernard and Christophe Llorca, indicated that he also filed a complaint in Monaco against the royal family for attempted extortion and theft.
The royal family in turn accused its former administrator of breach of trust and theft of documents.
According to The worldPalmero oversaw assignments for members of the royal family, including the prince’s sisters, Carolina and Estefana, and that of his wife Charlene.
The newspaper Monaco-Morning He accused Palmero of spreading private family information.
However, his lawyers assured that the former administrator warned The world that his notebooks, also in the hands of authorities in Monaco as part of another investigation, were confidential and were not supposed to be made public.
Last year the Council of Europe, an institution that guarantees Human Rights and is not linked to the European Union, warned Monaco about the deficiencies in its fight against money laundering.
In this sense, the principality announced last week the creation of a new authority for financial security that will soon begin working to combat money laundering and other types of corruption.
FUENTE: AFP
