adminBARCELONA. — Lionel Messi’s former tax advisors came out in support of the football star yesterday as his trial for alleged fraud continued in Barcelona, saying he never handled his wealth management.
Messi (28) and his father Jorge Horacio Messi are accused of using a chain of fake companies in Belize and Uruguay to avoid paying taxes on 4.16 million euros of Messi’s income earned through the sale of his image rights from 2007-09.
The trial kicked off in Barcelona on Tuesday, and the Argentina star himself will take the stand today.
He “didn’t take any decisions and I didn’t see anyone consulting him for anything,” said Angel Juarez, one of the partners at law firm Juarez Veciana which managed Messi’s tax affairs at the time. — AFP.
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