It is claimed customs officials stopped the Hollywood A-lister, 76, and searched his luggage, holding him for three hours.
Former California Governor and Terminator star Arnold Schwarzenegger was temporarily held by customs officials at Munich Airport on Wednesday after failing to declare a luxury watch in his luggage while on his way to Austria, according to German media.
A source has said Schwarzenegger caused concern over a “watch he owns,” which officials thought could be auctioned off as part of a charity event.
Arnold Schwarzenegger was reportedly detained by customs officials at Munich Airport after failing to declare a watch costing $21,000 (£16555).
If this were the case, the Terminator actor would have had to declare the item as in import per international commerce laws. Thomas Meister, Munich’s customs spokesperson told Bild that officers “initiated criminal tax proceedings”.
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According to The Mirror, a source claimed that Schwarzenegger “followed procedures presented to him” and the movie star was not asked to fill out a declaration form. It was also reported by Page Six that he answered questions honestly.
A source told the outlet that he cooperated at every step even though it was an incompetent shakedown, a total comedy of errors that would make a very funny cop movie. According to reports, Arnold agreed to pay fees and taxes ahead of time, despite the watch being his own property.
German tabloid Bild, which initially reported on Schwarzenegger’s detention, said the 76-year-old actor stayed with German authorities for around three hours after they found a custom-made Audemars Piguet wristwatch that was worth nearly $30,000 in his luggage.
According to the tabloid, criminal tax proceedings were initiated against Schwarzenegger, with a customs spokesperson saying the watch “should have been registered because it is an import.”
A spokesperson for Munich main customs told German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung that if the goods remain in the EU, you have to declare them through customs. They stated that this applies to everyone, whether their name is Schwarzenegger or Müller, Meier, Huber.”
Schwarzenegger reportedly informed customs officials that he was planning to auction the watch for a good cause, his non-profit Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative has a fundraising event scheduled in the town of Kitzbühel near Austria’s Kaiser Mountains on Thursday. The German officials nonetheless, reportedly charged Schwarzenegger some $38,000, including more than $4,000 in tax value and a more than $5,000 penalty, according to Bild.
An unidentified source informed CBS that the actor had not been asked to fill out a declaration form and tried to pay the dues at the airport with a credit card, but the machine was not working. Bild reported that the customs officials ended up accompanying Schwarzenegger to a bank terminal to withdraw the money.
The actor was expected to continue on his journey but a customs spokesperson told Agence-France Presse that “the watch will probably have to stay.”
It’s alleged the situation grew ever more stressful – the card reader didn’t work and Arnold was unable to withdraw the amount from an ATM machine. The banks were closed and the source said a new card reader was issued to the actor, so he was eventually able to settle the issue.
A source also told Page Six that the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative will properly report it as all of Arnold’s non-profits do and that his charity auctions raise millions of dollars for after-school programs every year, for kids all over the United States and environmental work around the world.
He went on to say, that they hope Germany spends as much energy turning around their economy as they do asking for tax payments for people’s property they bring into the country, and hope next time they do not make him pay taxes on his suits. Arnold’s representatives have contacted Daily Star for comment.
