Barcelona striker Lionel Messi is closer to facing trial over alleged tax fraud after a judge rejected his appeal against being named in the case, according to a report in AS.
Lionel Messi expected to face trial over alleged tax fraud
Lionel Messi’s appeal against being named in an alleged tax fraud case has been rejected
Dean Mouhtaropoulos
His lawyer had argued that there was no evidence connecting Messi to any wrongdoing and had requested that the court dismiss the proceedings based on that fact. The public prosecutor in charge of the case argued that Messi was “on the periphery of the financial, contractual and tax management of his income”, and thus it was right for him to be part of the case. The judge agreed.
Messi and his father, who is also named in the case, have five days to appeal the decision.
Messi and his father Jorge Messi are accused of failing to pay more than €4 million in taxes, charges that both deny. The allegations date back to a time period between 2007 and 2009 when they are accused of using companies in South America to tell Messi’s image rights, thus avoiding tax obligations in Spain.
Messi’s father made a €5 million payment to Spanish tax authorities in August 2013, the total amount of the alleged unpaid amount, plus interest.
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