Lionel Messi Investigated For Fraud In Spain Barcelona
footballer Lionel Messi and his father are being investigated in Spain
for allegedly defrauding the state of more than 4m euros (£3.4m).
The
25-year-old Argentina forward and his father, Jorge Horacio, are
suspected of filing fraudulent tax returns for 2007-09, officials say.
The World Player of the Year has so far made no comment on the allegation.
His net annual salary at Barcelona is said to be 16m euros, making him one of the world's highest-paid athletes.
On
Wednesday, a complaint signed by prosecutor Raquel Amado was filed at
the courthouse in Gava - the affluent Barcelona district where Messi
lives.
Judges at the courthouse must accept the complaint before the suspects can be charged, reports say.
Messi
and his father are suspected of using companies abroad - in Belize and
Uruguay - to sell the rights to use the footballer's image.
The
accusation is that by using companies based outside Spain where he lives
and plays club football, Messi and his father avoided paying more than
4m euros in tax...
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