The former lover of King Juan Carlos, Corinna Sayn-Wittgenstein, has got the British High Court to withdraw the immunity from prosecution of the King Emeritus so that, like any other member of the public, following his abdication eight years ago, he can now be tried in a British court for extreme harassment and illegal surveillance, which the German Princess alleges he had carried out by officials of the Spanish secret services, following their romantic breakup.
Justice Sir Matthew Nicklin concluded that “none of the grounds for defending the existence of state immunity have been substantiated, and therefore, the lawsuit must continue.”
He added, “The accused is neither a sovereign nor the Head of State of Spain”. He concluded that since his abdication, he had no right to personal immunity.
The decision of the High Court of London comes at a delicate time for Juan Carlos I who intended to return to Spain in the next month or two, at least temporarily. This may now delay his departure from Abu Dhabi where he has lived since 2020.
Following her victory, the case for extreme harassment and illegal surveillance will continue in London with Juan Carlos I as a defendant without his former dynastic privileges.
The lawsuit accuses Juan Carlos I, among other things, for “subjecting Corinna Sayn-Wittgenstein and her advisers to close surveillance in London and elsewhere, trespassing on the property of the German princess in Shropshire and illegally intercepting/monitoring her mobile and internet accounts and the mobile and internet accounts of her advisers.”
A date has not yet been set for the hearing.
