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 Click here to view images of Prince Albert II A man is serving a six day sentence in Monaco for insulting the tiny principality’s ruler Prince Albert II.
The man, believed to be named Hicham from the French town of Beausoleil, entered Monaco around midnight on Tuesday, already intoxicated. He entered a bar and tried to order more drinks but was refused because of his drunk state.
Enraged, the man began to insult the people in the bar. When police were called and they began to arrest him, the man then insulted the police and also Prince Albert II.
Facing a three year sentence under Monaco’s penal code article 58 – or lese-majeste as it is commonly known – the man had his sentence reduced to six days after telling a Monegasque court that he had no recollection of that night and he held the Prince in high regard.
As ancient as the lese-majeste law sounds, according to the British newspaper, Daily Mail, it is enforced not only in Monaco, but also Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Greece and Spain.
Thailand is perhaps most famous for its lese-majeste – French for “injured monarch” – laws. Over there, one can face up to fifteen years for insulting the Thai royals.
Source: Nice Matin, Daily Mail
This weekend, Saudi Arabia’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal released several documents to the media which refute allegations that he raped a young model aboard his yacht docked in Ibiza, Spain in August 2008. Last week, a Spanish court re-opened the case which was originally closed due to a lack of evidence.
 View more images of Prince Alwaleed at Daylife.com The documents Prince Alwaleed’s private office sent to Royalty in the News include a scan of his passport, which is marked for France in August 2008, and scans of yacht navigation logs, again showing Alwaleed’s yacht, Kingdom 5-KR, was not ever docked in Spain during that time.
The Prince’s private office also released statement from Heba Fatani, the Sr Executive Manager of the Corporate Communications department of Kingdom Holding Company. Fatani is quoted as saying Alwaleed was with his wife, Princess Ameerah, and daughter, Princess Reem, at the time and was also surrounded by French security while being in multiple public places in France.
In addition, Fatani says, “While the Prince is a committed advocate for women and has empathy for any assault victim, he was simply not present” in Ibiza as the alleged victim claims.
Also speaking out is Alwaleed’s wife, Princess Ameerah. According to the AFP, she has said this about the rape allegations:
“I was with my husband outside of Spain the day these allegations took place in Ibiza.”
“Quite simply we were not there. We were together in the French city of Cannes. I was with him all the time, and we were with at least 30 people,” she said.
“Hundreds of witnesses can confirm that we were in Cannes, just as there are dozens of proofs that we were not in Ibiza in 2008.”
The reason why this case has been reopened is because a provincial court overturned the ruling to close the case, and an Ibiza court wanted to formally request assistance from the Saudi authorities to take a statement.
Source: AFP, Private Office of HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal
A court in Spain is once again looking into allegations that Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal raped a young model aboard a yacht three years ago off Ibiza. The case was originally closed due to lack of evidence, but its been reopened after a Balearic Island provincial court overruled the decision.
 Click for original photo at Daylife.com According to the model, who’s name has not been released, she was with Prince Alwaleed – the nephew of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz and one of the world’s richest men – at a Ibiza nightclub, but blacked out at one point. She then woke up in the bedroom of his luxury yacht with the Prince on top of her.
“I didn’t drink much, but I think there was something in my glass,” she said in an SMS text message at 5:12am August 13 2008, according to witness Benedicto Moreno Venecia.
The Prince strongly denies the allegations.
“These allegations are completely and utterly false. The alleged encounter simply never happened. Indeed, the events could not have happened,” said the statement published on Alwaleed’s Kingdom Holding Company website. “Neither His Royal Highness nor his lawyers were informed or aware of any complaint filed in Ibiza in 2008 or that the same complaint was dismissed in 2010.”
“Not only was Prince Alwaleed not in Ibiza at any time in 2008 but has not been in Ibiza for over a decade. Further Prince Alwaleed’s yacht, Kingdom 5KR was not in Ibiza in 2008 nor has Prince Alwaleed ever charted a yacht in Ibiza,” the statement goes on.
Alwaleed “was nowhere near Ibiza when the alleged events took place. As relevant travel records and itinerary confirm, he was in the presence of dozens of people at that time, including his family, and not in Spain.”
Kingdom Holding Company spokeswoman Heba Fatani added that “there have been many examples of people impersonating Prince Alwaleed over the Internet and elsewhere for their own purposes.”
However, according to Spain’s National Toxicology Institute, traces of semen was found in the model’s genital area and there was nordazepam, metronidazol and caffeine in her urine, after she filed the complaint the next day.
As of now, the court has requested Saudi Arabian authorities “to take a statement from the accused,” the spokeswoman said in an email. But the request “has not been completed yet because the judge has given a deadline to the parties to formulate in writing the questions they want to raise,” the spokeswoman said.
The model’s lawyer, Javiet Beloqui wants Prince Alwaleed to provide a DNA sample to compare it to the semen found on his client.
“If he is innocent, it is all over and if not, he will be charged with rape,” Beloqui said. “It is as simple as that.”
Sources: AFP, AP
Monegasque royal newlyweds are suing the French magazine L’Express for publishing stories “incorrect facts about their private life” in the days leading up to their wedding earlier this month.
 Click here for more pics The magazine published stories on its website, saying Charlene Wittstock – now Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene – tried to flee Monaco a few days before her lavish nuptials. She supposedly learned that Prince Albert II might have fathered another child out of wedlock.
According to L’Express, Charlene’s passport was confiscated by officials when she tried to board a one way flight to her home of South Africa.
Although the reports were rejected by the Prince and many high ranking officials in Monaco, they were picked up by numerous news outlets.
Even on the day of her civil wedding, Charlene denied the rumors, claiming that it was nothing but “vicious gossip and empty rumours”.
“It’s all lies,” she said to Vogue magazine.
Her father, Michael Wittstock, has denied the stories. “I am so disappointed that people believe in this nonsense,” he said.
The reason for the lawsuit is because, as the couple claimed, the magazine “gave credibility to these unfounded rumors by publishing them. “
On the day of their religious ceremony, however, the Palace admitted that Prince Albert was to undergo a paternity test. Whether that test actually took place is not yet known.
Source: Sky News, Independent (South Africa), Royal News Examiner
He may royalty, but Prince Laurent was treated like any other Belgian citizen Wednesday when he was stripped of his driver’s license for two weeks due to speeding.
 Mark Renders/Getty Images/FILE Laurent, age 47, was caught driving 30 km (19 miles) above the speed limit in downtown Brussels Monday afternoon. A speed camera captured his Fiat Punto Abarth speeding by at 82 km (51 miles) per hour on a 50 kph (31 mph) street.
“He was clearly driving too fast,” palace spokesman Pierre Emmanuel de Bauw said.
This is the third time the Prince had his license suspended. The first time came in 1987, and in 2001, it happened again when he went 137 kph (85mph) in Bruges.
He also caused controversy once by saying that there should be “a special license for those driving a fast car”.
Source: AFP, The Telegraph
Sweden’s Princess Madeleine has been in the news this past week for various reasons – ranging to legal matters to fashion to even her private life which appears to be heating up.
 WireImage/All Over Press/FILE Earlier this month, the Princess was filmed with another man at a New York City bar. Video showed her lightly rubbing his arm at one point while they ordered drinks. Speculation spread like wild fire that Madeleine, who broke off her engagement to lawyer Jonas Bergström last year after he cheated on her, had found love again.
On Sunday, Swedish tabloids published photos of the Princess and her significant other entering his Manhattan apartment Thursday night and leaving it Friday morning. It is safe to say Madeleine has moved on from her broken heart.
The man she is linked to is 36 year old Chris O’Neill, who is a financial adviser and son of socialite Eva O’Neill. Since the video was shown on Swedish news websites, O’Neill has gone from a local celebrity to a worldwide one because he is dating one of the most eligible bachelorettes in the world.
Now for some legal issues. In 2009, Princess Madeleine won a libel case in Germany after she sued tabloids for reporting false information about her private life. This week, she received 3.5 million kronor, or $540,000, which will go to charity.
Also for charity, Madeleine designed two pairs of jeans for an American clothing brand, which will be available starting in February. For every 300 kronor made, they will go to World Childhood Foundation, which Madeleine’s mother, Queen Silvia, began to help vulnerable children.
The Princess has been staying in New York for quite sometime and it is unknown when she will return to Sweden. Judging by the way her life is going now, the Big Apple quite suits her.
Source: Expressen, The Local, Aftonbladet
The youngest daughter of the former King of Greece appeared in a California court Wednesday to face charges of speeding. Princess Theodora, age 27, was originally charged also with driving under the influence, but that was dropped.
 Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images/FILE The incident happened in September 2010. Theodora was driving up to 100 miles per hour and followed another vehicle too closely in Monterey County. Police found she had a blood alcohol level of .07
Theodora appeared in court for an arraignment in September, and was described by local media as “haughty”. It was reported that the Princess expected to simply pay her ticket and carry on with her life, but was surprised to learn she had to get a lawyer and appear in court.
She pleaded no contest on Wednesday.
The Princess was fined $1,000, plus court fees, for her offenses.
Another thing to add was Theodora’s name that was read in court: First name: HRH (Her Royal Highness), Middle name: Princess, Last Name: Theodora.
She lives in California where she seeking to be an actress under the name Theodora Greece.
Source: Monterey Herald, Royal Correspondent
Monaco’s royal palace is denying that Prince Albert II took bribes from Russia in order to vote for the country to host the 2014 Winter Olympics.
 Bauer Griffin The accusations come from American Robert Eringer, who claimed that he worked for Monaco’s secret intelligence from 2002 to 2007. Eringer said that the Prince, who is an IOC member, received “lavish gifts and trips” from Vladimir Putin before and after the Russian resort town of Sochi won the Games three years ago.
Eringer sent a letter to the International Olympics Committee through his lawyer, Brigham Ricks, who says the gifts “demonstrate Prince Albert’s bold and egregious violations of the IOC’s code of ethics and rules conflict of interest.”
Ricks also claims the Prince voted for Sochi, but that could not be proven.
Eringer is currently in a legal battle with Prince Albert, saying he was wrongfully dismissed from the intelligence agency and is seeking back pay.
The Monegasque sovereign has been an IOC member since 1985 and competed in five Winter Olympics as a bobsledder.
The IOC declined to say whether its ethics commission would look into the case.
“We take note of the allegations — and understand that there is an ongoing court case between Prince Albert and a former employee — and therefore we will at present refrain from further comment,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams said.
Source: AFP, AP
The former heir to the Nepali throne is under arrest after an alleged shooting incident at a restaurant. Crown Prince Paras is said to have opened fire on the daughter and son—in—law of Deputy Prime Minister Sujata Koirala after they criticized the now-deposed Nepali monarchy. This is the first time a member of the former royal family has been arrested.
 PRAKASH MATHEMA/AFP/Getty Images/FILE The incident happened at a resort in southern Nepal, in Chitwan. In a statement, Paras said he did shoot his gun, but defended the action, saying the couple made “baseless and provocative remarks against his role and the institution he represented.”
Media reports say Paras was under the influence of alcohol.
After the incident, the former Crown Prince then fled to another resort, Pokhara, where police detained him and brought him back to Chitwan for questioning.
News of Paras’ arrest riled supporters of the monarchy, who took to the streets throughout Nepal, demanding his release. The pro-monarchy Rastriya Prajatanta Party called for a shutdown of Chitwan. Nine protesters were arrested in Kathmandu for having torches in their demonstration. Even the East-West highway was shut down because of the rallies.
While he was Crown Prince, Paras was known for hard-partying and brawling. When the monarchy was abolished in 2008, he went to live in Singapore with his wife and children, though he still frequently visits Nepal.
Paras is the son of ex-King Gyanendra Shah.
Source: AP, The Hindu
 REUTERS/Ahim Rani/FILE The brother of the Sultan of Brunei, Prince Jefri Bolkiah, has to pay a law team in legal fees, a New York City jury found Wednesday.
The jury Faith Zaman Derbyshire and Thomas Derbyshire were awarded more than $10.1 million, though they gave Prince Jefri $54,000 which the Prince said the Derbyshires stole from him.
Jefri claimed the husband and wife legal team stole the money by exploiting his trust in various schemes. The Derbyshires said they did everything the Prince told them to do.
The trial provided the jury and other onlookers a glimpse of the jet-set lifestyle Prince Jefri leads as a member of one of the world’s wealthiest families.
Source: AP
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