Berliner Tageblatt - Spanish star Julio Iglesias accused of sexual assault by two ex-employees

The assaults were alleged to have taken place in 2021 at his mansions in the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas, according to a joint investigation published Tuesday by elDiario.es newspaper in Spain and Univision television.

Judicial sources confirmed to AFP that a complaint was filed against 82-year-old Iglesias on January 5 which is currently under review, without giving further details.

News of the complaint emerged after the joint investigation was released.

The report cited allegations from a domestic worker and a physiotherapist who accused Iglesias of sexual harassment, inappropriate touching, mistreatment and, in one case, rape.

"I felt like an object, like a slave in the 21st century," one of the women, identified as Rebeca, told US-based Spanish-language television Univision.

"He would touch me in every possible way," added the Dominican woman, who was 22 years old at the time of the alleged incidents.

The second woman, identified as Laura, is a Venezuelan physiotherapist who was 28 when she began working for Iglesias, one of the most successful Latin artists of all time.

Neither Univision nor elDiario.es were able to obtain a response from the singer regarding the allegations.

AFP also attempted to contact Iglesias for comment without success.

Iglesias was born in Madrid. Best known for his romantic ballads, he enjoyed huge success during the 1970s and 1980s and has recorded with US artists Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder and Willie Nelson.

The allegations were met with shock in Spain, with Equality Ministry Ana Redondo calling for "a full investigation" in an X post, while Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Diaz called them "chilling testimonies".

Author Ignacio Peyro, who recently published a biography of Iglesias, expressed "deep consternation" over the reported incidents, adding the allegations were "not known" when his book was published.

A revised and updated version of the biography is needed "as soon as possible", he added in a joint statement with the biography's publishers, Libros del Asteroide.

J.Bergmann--BTB