Lionel Messi’s sentence for tax fraud ‘a surprise’, says Guillem Balague
Wednesday 6 July 2016 14:32, UK
Lionel Messi's 21-month jail sentence for tax fraud is "a surprise", says Guillem Balague.
Messi and his father, Jorge, have received the same sentence but under Spanish law a prison sentence under two years might be served on probation, meaning they are unlikely to serve any time.
A Barcelona court found both men guilty of three counts of tax fraud. The sentence can be appealed through the Spanish supreme court, a statement said.
The court ordered Messi to pay a fine of around £1.7m and his father to pay £1.27m.
But after the general attorney had indicated that a sentence for Messi's father alone would be suffice, Sky Sports' Spanish football expert Balague admitted he was surprised Messi was not absolved.
"It is a bit surprising because the general attorney had asked for the absolution of Messi because they considered his intervention was 'purely formal', and that he was just following what his father was telling him to do.
"The general attorney wanted 18 months in prison for his father.
"His father said in front of the judge that he was responsible for all of the tax decisions of his son, and literally Lionel Messi said: 'I trust my Dad, I don't know what I sign.'
"That was the base of the defence for Lionel Messi, and that's why his lawyer asked for him to be cleared of all responsibility. That is something the general attorney, funnily enough, agreed on, but the judge hasn't."
The case concluded on June 3, with prosecutors contending that Messi's father was the main person responsible for defrauding Spain's tax authority of £3.19m from 2007-09.
However, the legal representative for the tax office said the Barcelona forward knew enough to also be held accountable.
At the end of the trial last month, he called for a prison sentence of 22 months each for both Messi and his father, while the public prosecutor requested a sentence of 18 months for the father only.
Government prosecutor Mario Maza had argued Messi and his father did not prove their innocence and were not able to show that the player did not have at least some knowledge of the corporate structures created to lower his tax burden in Spain.
"Messi knew more than he made it appear (in court)," Maza said at the time, adding that they "showed no credibility".
