Jack Hobbs
He might not be back!
Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was briefly detained at an airport in Munich Wednesday after reportedly failing to declare a luxury watch he was planning to auction.
According to the German newspaper Bild, the “Terminator” star was held by authorities after they found the Swiss brand Audemars Piguet wristwatch in Schwarzenegger’s luggage during an inspection.
Upon revealing his intention to auction the custom-made watch, Schwarzenegger, 76, was taken into custody.
The newspaper reports that the actor was initially friendly to customs officials but as time wore on, he allegedly got irritated.
It was also revealed that officials started asking Schwarzenegger personal questions including how many children he has, what his partner’s name is, how much money he has in the bank and what his net worth is.
Finally, after a lengthy interrogation, the actor was freed.
“We have initiated criminal tax proceedings,” Thomas Meister, a spokesperson for the customs office, told the outlet. “The watch should have been registered because it is an import.”
Schwarzenegger was detained for nearly three hours and was never asked for any forms regarding the watch, which is reportedly worth more than $21,000.
“He was never asked to fill out a declaration form and he answered every question from customs officers honestly,” a source tells The Post. “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.”
“Arnold agreed to pre-pay potential taxes on the watch and the officers failed to use a credit card machine for an hour until they gave up.”
According to the insider, the “True Lies” star was brought to a bank and was asked to “withdraw cash from an ATM to pay.” The card used also had a limit too low and the bank was closed.
After being brought back to the airport, the “Predator” star was then reportedly taken by a new officer with a different credit card to a bank where the actor was able to withdraw the amount needed.
Schwarzenegger’s watch will most likely still be sold at the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative charity auction in Kitzbuhel, Austria, Thursday.
“The Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative will properly report it, as all of Arnold’s nonprofits do,” the source notes. “His charity auctions raise millions of dollars every year for after-school programs for kids all over the United States and environmental work around the world.
“We 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 we hope next time they don’t make him pay taxes on his suits.”
The Post has reached out to Schwarzenegger’s rep for comment.
This post was originally posted by NYPost
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings