Arnold Schwarzenegger's trip to a charity auction just hit a snag.
The actor and former governor of California was detained Wednesday for several hours at Munich Airport after he was stopped by customs officers while traveling with an unregistered luxury watch, according to The Washington Post and CNN.
German newspaper Bild also published a photo that showed Schwarzenegger, who was reportedly traveling from Los Angeles, with two customs officers.
"None of the people I know and sat next to on our commercial flight filled out a declaration form, including Arnold — he got to customs, and they told him he was 'randomly' selected to be searched," Schwarzenegger's representative Daniel Ketchell told The Washington Post. "During the search, he answered every single question the customs officer asked, so to say he didn’t declare anything is 100% false."
A source familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly told USA TODAY on Wednesday that Schwarzenegger was detained by customs officers for three hours for traveling with a watch he owns, which he may be auctioning off at a charity auction on Thursday in Kitzbühel, Austria.
"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 source said.
This allegedly involved officers bringing Schwarzenegger to a bank to withdraw cash after he agreed to pre-pay potential taxes on the watch, only to find the bank was closed and the ATM limit was too low. "When he returned, a new officer brought a new credit card machine that worked," the source claimed, adding that the watch is still "likely" to be auctioned off, and the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative "will properly report it, as all of Arnold’s non-profits do."
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Customs office spokesperson Thomas Meister told CNN that criminal tax proceedings have been initiated, as Schwarzenegger's watch – an imported item – needed to be registered.
The "Terminator" star is scheduled to host a dinner and auction for environmental protection on Thursday in Kitzbühel, according to the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative website.
Proceeds will support the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative, which organizes the Austrian World Summit climate conference annually.
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