Shakira is moving back to Miami, uprooting her family from Barcelona, Spain, to Florida after reaching a custody agreement with her ex, Spanish soccer star Gerard Piqué.
The Colombian pop sensation, 45, and Piqué, 35, announced their separation in June. They share two sons, Sasha Piqué Mebarak, 7, and Milan Piqué Mebarak, 9, who will move with her next year to Florida, where much of the singer’s family resides. Shakira and her sons have lived in Barcelona for eight years.
“We have signed a custody agreement,” the celebrity parents said Wednesday in a joint statement to The Times.
“Our sole objective is to provide our children with the utmost security and protection and hope that they can continue with their lives in a safe and calm environment,” they said. “We appreciate that their privacy will be respected.”
TMZ reported that the “Whenever, Wherever” singer and the FC Barcelona defender’s legal teams are said to have reached the agreement after a 12-hour meeting. The Times has confirmed that the two signed an agreement that is “best for the kids.”
The couple announced their split over the summer after being together for 12 years and amid widespread reports that Piqué had cheated on her; however, neither superstar has publicly addressed those allegations.
In September, the Grammy Award winner was ordered to stand trial in Spain, where she faces six counts of tax fraud. The trial date has not been set, but the case hinges on where the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer lived from 2012 to 2014.
In 2018, prosecutors in Barcelona accused the singer, full name Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, of failing to pay 14.5 million euros ($13.9 million) in taxes on income earned during that two-year period. Prosecutors allege that she spent more than half of that period in Spain and should have paid taxes in the country, even though her official residence was in the Bahamas.
The pop star has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and rejected a deal with authorities to avoid going to trial, the Associated Press reported in September. Her public relations firm has said that she already paid what she owed and an additional 3 million euros ($2.8 million) in interest.
Prosecutors are seeking an eight-year prison sentence and a hefty fine if she is found guilty of tax evasion.
