Prince Charles Accepted A Huge Cash Donation From Osama Bin Laden's Family

Prince Charles has been in hot water over scandals involving his charitable foundation — and his troubles don't look like they'll be disappearing anytime soon. The Prince of Wales has already been dealing with allegations that he accepted $3 million in cash donations from Sheikh Hamad bin Jasseim bin Jaber Al Thani, the controversial former prime minister of Qatar. According to a report in The Times, Charles accepted suitcases and shopping bags filled with money between 2011 and 2015, and deposited the funds into the Prince of Wales' Charitable Fund (PWCF).

While Charles' office said there was nothing inappropriate or illegal about the donations, the scandals didn't stop there. The future king has also been accused of giving Lord David Brownlow an honorary title after Brownlow reportedly gave millions of pounds in donations to the prince's foundation and also helped bail out the organization's failing property development project in Scotland, according to The Guardian. As a result, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator is investigating the property transactions.

And things are about to get a lot worse for Charles, who is now being accused of accepting money from the family of the world's most notorious terrorist.

A new report alleges that Prince Charles accepted a £1 million (about $1.2 million) donation for his charitable organization from the family of terrorist Osama bin Laden, who was the mastermind behind the September 11 attacks on the United States, per Britannica. According to The Sunday Times, Charles took the money after a meeting in October 2013 at his private London residence with Bakr bin Laden, who made the donation along with his brother, Shafiq bin Laden.

Despite their relation to half-brother Osama, there has never been any evidence that Bakr or Shafiq have been involved in terrorist activities. In fact, the wealthy bin Laden family have publicly spoken out against Osama, according to Daily Beast. Still, The Sunday Times report contends that Charles decided to ignore the "initial objection of advisers at Clarence House," as well as the Prince of Wales Charitable Foundation (PWCF), and accept the money. His office denied any wrongdoing regarding the decision.

"Due diligence was conducted, with information sought from a wide range of sources, including government. The decision to accept the donation was taken wholly by the trustees," Sir Ian Cheshire, chairman of PWCF, said in a statement, per The Guardian. "Any attempt to suggest otherwise is misleading and inaccurate."

There is some good news for Prince Charles. The Charities Commission, which registers and oversees charities in England and Wales, has decided not to investigate the £2.5 million donation given to the Prince of Wales's Charitable Fund (PWCF) by Sheikh Hamad bin Jasseim bin Jaber Al Thani, the former prime minister of Qatar. The U.K. watchdog said it has "no concerns" about the funds. "We have assessed the information provided by the charity and have determined there is no further regulatory role for the commission," the organization said, per the BBC.

However, the Metropolitan Police are investigating whether the prince's foundation offered special privileges in exchange for money. The probe was launched in February 2022 after allegations that Charles' former valet, Michael Fawcett, promised a Saudi Arabian businessman knighthood and British citizenship in exchange for donations to the foundation, per ITV. As a result, Fawcett — known to be the future king's right-hand man — resigned in November 2021, per the Daily Mail.

"Michael will have no more dealings with either His Royal Highness or Clarence House from now on," a source explained. "That is absolutely clear. He's not coming back in any way, shape or form, that cannot be stressed enough."

While Prince Charles is already making plans for his ascension to the throne as and when Queen Elizabeth dies, the ongoing scandals involving his charity have led to questions about whether or not he will be a beneficial king.

"A million euros in cash stuffed into bags, or shoved into a holdall or a suitcase, and handed over behind closed doors is what you might expect from a South American drug baron, not the heir to the British throne," Norman Baker, an expert on royal finances, told The Sunday Times. "This is grubby, scuzzy behavior, which reinforces the view many are reaching, that Charles is not fit to be king."

Chief royal correspondent Jack Royston agrees that Charles' transition from prince to king might not be a smooth one. "Prince Charles is going to have a battle on his hands basically because he has these twin problems of one, the public starting position is that they are nowhere near as warm to him as they are to the queen," Royston told Newsweek. 

The prince's second issue, according to Royston, is his subpar decision-making skills. "Some of his decisions have arguably been quite questionable, for example he brought back one of his aides Michael Fawcett twice only for Fawcett to have to resign against the backdrop of a police investigation into Charles' charities," Royston explained. "So some of his decision making over the years has arguably been a bit questionable."