Guessing Game Over on Missing King's Whereabouts

Spain confirms former monarch Juan Carlos is now in United Arab Emirates
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 17, 2020 10:40 AM CDT
Mystery of a Missing King Is Over
In this 2019 photo, former King Juan Carlos waves during a bullfight in Madrid, Spain.   (AP Photo/Andrea Comas, File)

Spain's former king set off a global guessing game earlier this month when he left the country amid financial controversy. Nobody seemed to know where Juan Carlos I went. Now, Spain's royal household has confirmed rumors that the 82-year-old former monarch has holed up in the United Arab Emirates, reports the BBC. Separately, Spain's justice minister said Juan Carlos would return to Spain if he's summoned to appear in court, per El Pais.

"If the justice system is looking for him, he will immediately appear," says Juan Carlos Campo. Meanwhile, critics want to know who covered the estimated $166,000 cost of the relocation to the UAE. The former king gave up the throne to his son, King Felipe, in 2014, and he has been beset by a number of scandals since. In the latest, he's accused of receiving improper payments from Saudi Arabia involving a high-speed rail contract. (More King Juan Carlos I stories.)

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