Princess Cristina: 182 “I don’t knows” and 55 “I don’t recalls”
EL PAÍS obtains official court transcript of royal daughter’s historic February 8 court appearance
When Princess Cristina made her historic appearance earlier this month before a judge investigating for alleged tax fraud and money laundering, King Juan Carlos’s youngest daughter told the courtroom 182 times during her testimony that she didn’t know the answer to the question being asked.
On 55 occasions -- according to the official transcript of that hearing obtained by EL PAÍS on Thursday -- Cristina said she didn’t remember certain situations or events that were being described to her.
Palma de Mallorca Judge José Castro asked the princess some 400 questions during her more than six hour appearance in his courtroom on February 8.
The princess tried to distance herself from any financial dealings that occurred at her husband’s non-profit Nóos Institute and the Aizoon real estate firm that they both owned.
“I trusted my husband,” she told the judge, explaining that her spouse Iñaki Urdangarin handled all the financial affairs.
Prosecutors are asking for a 17-year sentence for Urdangarin who is under investigation for allegedly diverting public funds from the regional governments of the Balearic Islands and Valencia that were granted to his Nóos Institute via no-bid contracts to organize tourism and sporting events and conferences. They are also recommending that Cristina return 600,000 euros, her half of the funds channeled through Aizoon.
At one point, according to the official transcript, she said to Castro: “I have no knowledge of that, your honor, but you are almost offending me.”
She admitted that her husband referred to her as “Kit” in many of the emails he sent to her, which the court has on record.
