Neymar deal: Barca to stand trial
Neymar
Barcelona have been ordered to stand trial over alleged tax fraud linked to the signing of Brazilian striker Neymar.
The National Court in Madrid has ordered
the trial of Barca’s president Josep Maria Bartomeu, his predecessor
Sandro Rosell and the club as a defendant in its own right.
They have always said they paid €57m to
sign Neymar from his home club Santos in 2013. The court suspects the
actual price was €83m and that Rosell and Bartomeu hid the real cost
from the taxman.
Judge
Jose de la Mata said in a written ruling there was evidence that they
“knew the real cost of the signing of Neymar would be greater” than what
they recorded in the club’s 2013 accounts.
The defendants have 10 days to make
court filings in their defence, the court said. It did not set a trial
date for the time being.
The ruling comes as Barcelona aim for a possible treble in the Spanish league, Spanish cup and Champions League.
Prosecutors are seeking a prison
sentence of two years and three months for Bartomeu and seven years for
Rosell, as well as a €22.2m fine for the club.
The cost of the transfer rose steeply
when Barca decided to bring forward an initial agreement signed in 2011
for the player to move in 2014 by a year as other clubs, including
rivals Real Madrid, attempted to hijack the deal.
Rosell resigned over the scandal in
January 2014 after a club member lodged a complaint for misappropriation
of funds, with his then vice-president Bartomeu taking charge.
Shortly afterwards the club confirmed a
number of extra agreements including a €10m signing bonus for the player
and scouting and collaborative agreements totalling €86.2m, but
insisted the transfer fee remained €57m.
In February of last year, Barcelona
announced that they had made a voluntary payment of €13.5m to the
Spanish tax authorities regarding the transfer.
No comments:
Post a Comment