Townsville Bulletin

Scandal plagues royal aide

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One of Prince Charles’s closest aides has quit after claims he had fixed an honour for a Saudi tycoon who donated more than £1.5m ($2.8m) to royal charities.

Michael Fawcett, the prince’s former valet, stepped down temporaril­y as chief executive of the Prince’s Foundation after The Sunday Times provided evidence of Charles’s dealings with the businessma­n.

Mahfouz Marei Mubarak bin Mahfouz paid tens of thousands of pounds to fixers with links to the prince who told him they could secure the honour.

Charles, 72, p e r s o n a l l y awarded Mahfouz, 51, his CBE at a private ceremony at Buckingham Palace in November 2016. The event was not announced in the Court Circular, the official list of royal engagement­s.

The prince’s aides and senior staff in his charities had helped the paid fixers to secure the CBE after Mahfouz donated large sums to restoratio­n projects of particular interest to Charles, including Dumfries House and the Castle of Mey.

Mahfouz was a Saudi national trying to secure British citizenshi­p or residency via a so-called “golden visa” for investment. He had been advised securing honorary roles and awards would help his cause.

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