Soccer's five-times World
Player of the Year Lionel Messi said on Thursday he knew nothing about
an alleged tax evasion scheme when he signed contracts related to image
rights.
The Barcelona and Argentina forward appeared in court in Barcelona on
Thursday alongside his father Jorge Horacio to testify against charges
of tax evasion.
Lionel and Jorge Horacio Messi are accused by the Spanish tax office
of defrauding the government of 4.2 million euros ($4.7 million) between
2007 and 2009.
They could face jail terms of up to 22 months if found guilty,
although it is customary in Spain that offenders of non-violent crimes
with a sentence of under two years do not serve time in jail.
The case centres on the player's image rights and a web of shell
companies allegedly used to evade taxes on income from those rights.
According to the prosecutors' office, revenue was hidden using shell
companies in Uruguay, Belize, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
In court, Lionel Messi admitted to signing contracts protecting his
image rights but said he had no knowledge he was partaking in any
wrongdoing or defrauding the Spanish state.
"The truth is that I knew nothing. As my father explained, I was
devoted to playing football, I trusted my father, I trusted the lawyers
he had chosen to run things and I had no idea about anything," he told
the judge.
"I signed them (contracts) because I trust my father. He is my father
and it obviously never crossed my mind that he would fool me or
disappoint me so I signed because he told me to, because I trusted him,
and as I said before, the lawyers told us to do it that way," he also
said.
Asked if he had ever suspected the scheme was set up to avoid tax in
Spain, Messi responded: No, because I know nothing about that matter. I
was honestly never interested in that."
"I DIDN'T KNOW"
Jorge Horacio Messi admitted to signing contracts presented to him by
his adviser, but said neither he nor his son knew they were avoiding
paying tax on them.
"The only thing I told him was that his image rights were protected by a company," he said in court.
Asked if he had told Lionel that he was going to avoid paying tax in Spain, he said: "No because I didn’t know that either."
Messi and his father paid five million euros to the tax authorities
as a "corrective" measure after being formally investigated in June
2013.
The footballer is 10th on Forbes Magazine's list of the world's
highest-earning athletes over the past decade, with an estimated income
of $350 million during this period.
The trial is due to end on Friday but Messi and his father will not
attend the final day. It is not yet clear when a verdict will be
delivered.
Messi, who has scored 453 goals in 531 appearances for Barcelona in
all competitions, has won eight La Liga titles, four King's Cups and
four Champions League crowns.
He is also captain of Argentina and was due to rejoin the team
immediately after his court appearance to prepare for the Copa America
in the USA, playing their first game against holders Chile on June 7.
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