Schwarzenegger held at airport over watch
ACTOR and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger was detained at Munich Airport after failing to declare a luxury watch while on his way to a climate change fundraiser.
German officials confirmed to The Telegraph that police had opened criminal proceedings yesterday against the Austrian-american film star.
The 76-year-old, a former governor of California, reportedly spent close to three hours in detention after touching down on a flight from Los Angeles shortly after midday.
The timepiece at the centre of the incident was made by Swiss luxury watchmaker Audemars Piguet and is valued at around £20,000, German media reported.
Schwarzenegger was said to have had the watch made and reportedly brought it to Europe to auction it off today at a charity event in the Austrian ski resort of Kitzbuhel that will benefit the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative.
All items brought into the EU with a value over €300 (£260) have to be declared at customs and are subject to a tax proportional to the value of the item.
It was unclear whether Schwarzenegger was only required to pay taxes on the watch or if there was an additional fine for allegedly failing to declare it.
Varying reports speculated that the actor was required to hand over between €9,000 and €35,000 before being allowed to leave the airport. He was said to have been prepared to pay the fee on his credit card but was ordered to pay some of the total in cash, which he was reportedly escorted to a bank to withdraw.
The star appeared unimpressed by his run-in with local authorities. “That’s the problem Germany is suffering from. They can’t see the wood for the needles,” he told the Bild newspaper.