Barcelona star, Lionel Messi and his father Jorge Horacio have denied accusations of tax evasion for more than three years between 2006 and 2009 in the region of €4m.
Messi and his father are under the investigation of Spanish tax authorities for allegedly avoiding payment of charges due from sales of the Argentina captain’s image rights by operating through companies based outside the country.
Prosecutor Raquel Amado signed a complaint and filed it with the courthouse in the Gava district of Barcelona on Wednesday.
But denying the charges, Messi wrote: on his official Facebook account: “We have learned through the media about the claim filed by the Spanish tax authorities.
“We are surprised about this news, because we have not committed any infringement. We have always fulfilled all of our tax obligations, following the advice of our tax consultants, who will take care of clarifying this situation.”
If convicted, the superstar faces as much as six years in prison.
