Having been accused of misleading tax authorities, the former girlfriend of Leonardo DiCaprio is reported to be facing a string of criminal charges for the matter.
- Jan 4, 2019
AceShowbiz - Model Bar Refaeli is reportedly facing charges of tax evasion and money laundering in her native Israel.
The beauty has been under investigation for several years and is accused of misleading tax authorities about her earnings and whereabouts from 2006 to 2012.
According to JPost.com, Refaeli allegedly told Israeli officials her primary residence during that period was in the U.S., while supposedly claiming the opposite was true in her dealings with American authorities, reportedly allowing her to avoid paying taxes in both territories.
However, prosecutors believe Refaeli, who dated Leonardo DiCaprio from 2005 to 2009, was actually living in Tel Aviv, Israel, at the time, during which she is said to have used a family member's name.
They are now preparing to slap the model with a string of criminal charges, accusing her of trying to hide more than $6 million (£4.7 million) from tax bosses.
Her parents, Tzipi and Rafi Refaeli, are also reportedly facing legal action relating to the same investigation.
However, Bar's attorney, Moshe Mizrahi, insists the 33-year-old mother-of-two "hasn't hidden anything", telling Ynet that Israeli tax authorities are the ones backing out of a financial deal previously negotiated in 2009.
The stunner isn't the only celebrity in hot water over taxes - Colombian superstar Shakira was charged with tax evasion in Spain last month (December 2018).
She is accused of failing to hand over more than 14.5 million Euros, amounting to $16.3 million (£13 million), to the nation's tax officials between 2012 and 2014, after her accountants listed her Bahamas home as her official residence, when she is alleged to have been living in Barcelona with her soccer star beau, Gerard Pique, the father of her sons Milan, five, and Sasha, three.
The singer's lawyers maintain she was out of the country for the majority of the time in question, with the bulk of her income earned abroad.
