The €3million in cash donations that Prince Charles allegedly accepted from an ex-PM of Qatar is going to be probed by the charity watchdog, it has been reported.
Yesterday, it was revealed the Prince of Wales had reportedly accepted the cash donations - including €1million in a suitcase.
Prince Charles allegedly accepted more than €3million in cash donations from an ex-PM of Qatar – including €1million in a suitcase.
Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani is said to have handed banknotes over in meetings between 2011 and 2015.
The Charity Commission said they will "review the information" they've received about the reports of donations.
A spokesperson told The Mirror: “We are aware of reports about donations received by The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund.
"We will review the information to determine whether there is any role for the commission in this matter.”
A source told The Sun that this will include verifying payments and possibly questioning trustees.
The €1million in a suitcase was said to have been handed over during a meeting at Clarence House. On another occasion, cash was stuffed into carrier bags from upmarket London store Fortnum and Mason, the Sunday Times reported.
The Sunday Times said the money was given in €500 notes – a now discontinued denomination dubbed the “Bin Laden” for its links to terrorist financing in the past.
Clarence House insisted the money was “passed immediately to one of the prince’s charities who carried out the appropriate covenants and assured us all correct procedures were followed”.
The charity in question is the Prince of Wales’ Charitable Fund. It is understood that at least one trustee had no knowledge of the funds.
In addition, none of Charles’ meetings with Al Thani appears on the Court Circular record of royal engagements.
The Qatari connection will raise eyebrows. It is illegal to be gay in the Arab state and women are heavily discriminated against. The country hosts the World Cup this year amid claims from Amnesty International that 6,500 migrant workers died in construction schemes. Qatar contests the figures.
A Clarence House spokesperson told The Mirror: "Charitable donations received from Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim were passed immediately to one of the Princes charities who carried out the appropriate governance and have assured us that all the correct processes were followed.”
