Arnold Schwarzenegger was detained at the airport in Munich on Wednesday after officials spotted a luxury watch the actor reportedly failed to declare was planned for auction.
The 76-year-old actor was held by customs officials after they searched his luggage and found a custom-made Swiss brand Audemars Piguet $21,000 wristwatch in his suitcase before he was finally freed, the German news outlet Bild reported.
The “Terminator” star was held for three hours after arriving in the country from Los Angeles because he had failed to declare the item upon arrival.
The German tabloid reported that the former Gov. of California was friendly with officials in the beginning, but the longer the investigation went on the more agitated he became.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Detained at Munich Airport for 3 Hours Over Valuable Watch He Was Carrying https://t.co/im7XACrF9D
— People (@people) January 17, 2024
Munich Customs press officer Thomas Meister told CNN that Schwarzenegger “did not declare a product. A product that was imported from non-EU countries in order to remain in the EU. And this process applies to everyone.”
A spokesperson for the main customs office in Munich told the Guardian, “We have initiated criminal tax proceedings. The watch should have been registered because it is an import.”
The “Commando” star reportedly tried to tell officials the watch was being donated to the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative and was going to be auctioned off.
“This is the problem that Germany is suffering from. You can no longer see the forest for the trees,” Schwarzenegger said.
A source close to the actor told CNN, “Arnold was detained for three hours today at Munich airport for traveling with a watch he owns, that he might be auctioning at his charity auction tomorrow in Kitzbuhel (in Austria).”
“He was never asked to fill out a declaration form and he answered every question from customs officers honestly,” the source added. “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.”
The insider said that “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.”
The Hollywood actor was then brought to a bank and was asked to “withdraw cash from an ATM to pay,” the source added. “The ATM they brought him to had a limit too low and the bank was closed. When he returned, a new officer brought a new credit card machine that worked.”
The actor was finally allowed to leave the airport, the source concluded.