The office of Prince Charles has denied any wrongdoing in the heir to the British throne accepting bags of cash as charity donations from a Qatari politician.
According to the Sunday Times, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, Qatar’s former prime minister, gave the prince a total of 3 million euros.
The money was given to Charles in private meetings between 2011 and 2015, once in a suitcase and once in shopping bags from London’s Fortnum & Mason department store.
Per the newspaper, the funds were deposited in the accounts of the Prince of Wales’ Charitable Fund. It made no allegations of illegal behaviour.
In a statement, Charles’ office, Clarence House, said the donations “were immediately passed to one of the prince’s charities who carried out the appropriate governance and have assured us that all the correct processes were followed.”
The prince’s charitable fund confirmed to the newspaper that “the donor was a legitimate and verified counterparty… and our auditors signed off on the donation after a specific enquiry during the audit.”
“There was no governance failure,” Prince Charles’ office said.
Between 2007 and 2013, Hamad served as Qatar’s prime minister, overseeing the oil-rich country’s sovereign wealth fund, which has major property investments around the world, including London’s Shard skyscraper, Heathrow Airport, and Harrods department store.
A separate allegation is being investigated by London police that people associated with another of the prince’s charities, the Prince’s Foundation, offered to help a Saudi billionaire obtain honours and citizenship in exchange for donations. According to Clarence House, Charles was unaware of any such offer.