Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, accepted a suitcase containing a million euros in cash from a former Qatari prime minister, reports BBC.
The paper says this was one of three cash donations from Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim totaling three million euros.
Donations from the sheikh
Clarence House said donations from the sheikh were passed immediately to one of the prince’s charities and all the correct processes were followed.
There is no suggestion the payments were illegal. Prince Charles received the three cash donations in person from the former prime minister between 2011 and 2015.
It is claimed that on one occasion the money was handed over in a holdall at a meeting at Clarence House. On another, the paper reported the cash was contained in carrier bags from the department store Fortnum and Mason.
Transforming lives and sustainable communities
In a statement, Clarence House said: “Charitable donations received from Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim were passed immediately 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 funds were received by the Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund, whose stated aim is to “transform lives and build sustainable communities“, by awarding grants to good causes in fields such as conservation, education, health and social inclusion.
The fund told that its trustees had concluded the donor was legitimate and that its auditors had signed off on the donation.
Donations under scrutiny
Donations to Prince Charles’s charities have come under scrutiny in recent months.
The Metropolitan Police said earlier this year that it is investigating the claims about the Prince’s Foundation under the Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925.
The foundation is understood to be offering its full co-operation and Clarence House has said that Prince Charles had no knowledge of the alleged offer of honours or citizenship on the basis of donation to his charities.
Michael Fawcett, the prince’s former valet and chief executive of the foundation, resigned in November as the charity investigated the claims.
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Source: BBC
