SPAIN'S former King Juan Carlos I has fled the country after becoming embroiled in a corruption scandal.
The ex-head of state, 82, made the announcement in a letter to his son Felipe, the current king, amid an investigation by the Spanish Supreme Court into his alleged dealings in Saudi Arabia.
It is an embarrassing exit for the monarch who reigned for almost 40 years until 2014, when he voluntarily handed over the reins to King Felipe.
Juan Carlos has said he would be available to interview for prosecutors but has a surprise exit as legal pressure mounts.
It is not yet clear where he has moved to, but "well placed" sources have told the MailOnline that he has definitely left Spain.
The former king has been rocked after the supreme court opened an investigation into his alleged involvement in a high-speed rail contract in Saudi Arabia.
They are looking into whether he received a secret commission for helping to win a £6 billion Saudi rail deal after a former mistress reportedly made the allegations privately.
Spanish firms won a €6.7bn (£6bn) deal to build a Mecca-Medina rail link.
The probe also involves Swiss banks.
Spanish anti-corruption officials suspect that Juan Carlos kept some undeclared funds in Switzerland, and a Swiss investigation is under way.
The Spanish government has said in relation to the allegations that "justice is equal for all" and it would "not interfere" in the inquiry.
Juan Carlos' reputation also taken a knock since abdication with continuous rumours about lovers, corruption and foreign bank accounts.
He announced his departure plan in a letter to son King Felipe, where he said he hoped his exit would bring "tranquillity" to his reign.
Juan Carlos added he was making the decision "in the face of the public repercussions that certain past events in my private life are generating.
"Guided by the conviction to best serve the people of Spain, its institutions, and you as king, I inform you of my decision at this time to leave Spain.
"A decision I make with deep emotion but with great serenity."
Juan Carlos is widely admired for steering Spain from the tyranny of dictatorship under General Franco to democracy when he took over in 1975.
But he has faced growing criticism both towards the end of his reign and in his role as the ex-king.
Juan Carlos famously had to make a grovelling apology in April 2012 over an elephant hunting trip to Botswana during Spain's economic crisis.
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The public only discovered his trip when the king injured himself and required a special aircraft to bring him home.
And the entire royal family came under pressure when when his daughter, Princess Cristina, was accused of tax fraud in 2014 and became the first Spanish royal to stand trial.
While she was later acquitted, her husband was sentenced.
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