The former housekeeper of Jordanian Princess Firyal Irshaid is on trial at Southwark Crown Court in London. The princess testified that she learned her engagement ring was missing after spotting it in an auction catalogue.
According to The Independent and El País, 81-year-old Firyal testified in the case against former employee Maria Virgelina Taborda Henao, who is accused of stealing jewelry from the princess’s Belgravia home in 2020. Taborda Henao, known as Lina, worked for her for 11 years and denies the allegations.
Firyal told the court that in November 2020 her friend Pierre Jeannet, a partner at jewelry firm JAR, spotted a sapphire-and-diamond engagement ring made for her in a Canterbury Auction Galleries catalogue. The princess said she had not put it up for sale.
In March 2020, ahead of pandemic restrictions, Firyal left London and entrusted the home to her housekeeper. Prosecutors allege that the housekeeper’s nephew, Julian Ramirez, helped sell the jewelry. Evidence presented in court includes transfers totaling 17,835 pounds between June 2019 and November 2020.
After finding the ring, the princess gathered records and photographs to establish ownership of other items. She said some jewelry had been left in plain sight. Police recovered the ring, earrings and a necklace during a search. The case is ongoing, and the allegations remain before the court.