James Warren
FORMER MotoGP star Jorge Lorenzo has been accused of tax fraud due to his offshore dealings.
The Mallorcan 33 year old was named by the Tax Agency (Hacienda) in an investigation into an offshore assets network called ‘Red Charisma’.
The scheme allowed members, allegedly including Lorenzo, to move large amounts of money between banks to avoid tax control.
Lorenzo is accused of moving €856,966 between his home in Andorra, Monaco and Switzerland.
The accusations stem from the rider’s time living in London back in 2012.
The courts are investigating whether Lorenzo submitted returns for assets when he left Spain for the UK, and when he left the UK for his current residence in Andorra.
This isn’t the first time the former World Champion has been in trouble with the tax agency.
Lorenzo was investigated last year for irregularities of returns from between 2013 and 2016 for the amount of €40 million
2020 has not been a great year for the veteran rider, he was recently dumped by the Yamaha Factory Team as a test rider in favour of the freshly retired Brit Cal Crutchlow.
The team and Lorenzo came under criticism from fellow teammates for his lack of testing appearances during Yamaha’s miserable 2020 season.
Lorenzo has earned three titles in motorcycle racing’s premier class, in 2010, 2012 and 2015, and is the only rider to beat Marc Marquez to a World Championship.
However three seasons with Ducati and Honda marred by serious injuries and bad results led Lorenzo to announce his retirement from racing at the end of 2019.
