Saudi princess tries to leave Paris hotel without paying $7.4 mln bill

PARIS - Agence France-Presse

A picture taken on December 9, 2010 in Paris, shows a groom opening the entrance door of the luxury Shangri-La Hotel, listed Historic Building in 2009.

A Saudi princess was caught trying to leave the Shangri-La hotel in Paris without settling a six million euro ($7.4 million) bill for her rooms, police said yesterday, confirming a report in the daily Le Parisien.

Maha al-Sudani, the former wife of Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Nayef ben Abdel Aziz, tried to walk out on 3:30 am Thursday without paying for her suite and those of her 60-strong entourage, prompting staff to call in police, Le Parisien reported.

The Saudi Arabian ambassador was also contacted during the incident, added Le Parisien, which noted that Sudani enjoys diplomatic immunity.

When contacted by AFP, the luxury hotel's director Alain Borgers said that that are "no problems" with its clients and "no unpaid bills" at the moment.

The princess has already had previous run-ins over unpaid bills. In 2009, fashion chain Key Largo went to court to obtain 89,000 euros owed by the princess.