Spain’s former king Juan Carlos denied having an illegitimate daughter today after exposing the contents of a book to be published in the coming days.

In statements to the Spanish agency EFE from Abu Dhabi, where he lives, Juan Carlos refutes the book’s claims that he had a secret relationship with an aristocrat, with whom he even had a daughter named Alejandra.

“I categorically deny that I had an affair with Mrs. Rosario Palacios and that I had a daughter with her,” the former king of Spain told EFE.

The public stance of the former monarch, whose name has been embroiled in a string of scandals in previous years, has created a sensation as he usually does not comment on stories about his private life.

Juan Carlos, 84, explained that he felt the need to comment on the rumor, which was created “out of respect for the truth” and “honor” of the affected individuals, stressing that he “rejects and condemns as false everything that has been published in connection with this fabricated story. “.

Many media outlets in Spain and beyond have carried a statement about Juan Carlos’ “unknown (still) daughter” with reference to the book “King Corp.”. which will be released on May 8th. In it, two journalists claim that Juan Carlos had an illegitimate child in 1980. Alejandra, 43, is believed to be the fruit of Juan Carlos’ illegal affair with Rosario Palacios Cayeja, who died in 2016, a month before her 80th birthday.

Juan Carlos was forced to abdicate in 2014 amid a scandal involving members of the royal family and after an apology for a trip to Africa (including an elephant safari) at a time when Spain was in the midst of an economic crisis.

The former monarch left Spain in August 2020 and moved to Abu Dhabi when a prosecutor’s investigation into the fraud began, but it was dropped last year.

Source: Reuters.