Messi and father accused of €4m tax fraud

Barcelona's Argentina forward Lionel Messi and his father have been accused by Spanish tax authorities of defrauding the state of more than four million euros (£3.4m).

Barcelona's El Periodico newspaper says the attorney involved has told it that Messi and his father Jorge deliberately hid commercial revenues from the Spanish authorities from 2006 through to 2009 by channeling the income through front companies in tax havens.

The paper reports the amount owed as €13 million, though other media has the figure being sought by the authorities as €4 million.

The paper quotes its source as saying the alleged tax dodge "consisted of simulating the assignment of image rights to front companies based in tax havens [Belize, Uruguay] and, at the same time, formalising contracts of licensing, agency or benefit from services between these companies, and other such instruments domiciled in convenient jurisdictions [the UK, Switzerland]. 

This was done with the intended and successful aim that the incomes would move from countries where the companies or entities were based, to companies domiciled in tax havens, without being submitted to any taxation and, furthermore, with total opacity towards the Spanish Tax Authorities. The beneficiary of these incomes was no other than the person served - Lionel A. Messi."

The suit was presented before a judge on Wednesday morning in the Catalan town of Gava, where the Barcelona player is legally domiciled for tax purposes.