Barcelona star Neymar found guilty of tax fraud, sentenced to pay €45 million as penalty
Barcelona frontman Neymar Jr. has been found guilty of tax evasion by a Brazilian federal court, and has been ordered to pay a staggering sum of €45.9 million as penalty. The 24-year-old has the right to appeal the decision, after he was found guilty of not declaring his earnings in contracts with Santos, Barcelona and Nike.
Brazilian news daily Folha de Sao Paulo reported the news from a federal court in Rio de Janeiro, as the outlet revealed that a court judge found Neymar guilty of tax evasion and was sentenced to pay a sum of 188.8 million Brazilian reals in fines and back-taxes.
Develly Claudia Montez performed an audit for the court and wrote, “We studied the information regarding the tax case in question involving Neymar, the three businesses and his business partners [his parents] and we found that there had been fraudulent business practices.”
The businesses in question are Neymar Sport e Marketing, N & N Consultoria and N & N Administracao de Bens, three companies that court documents said Neymar used to avoid paying taxes to the tune of €56.36 million, in a period from 2012 to 2014. The judges examining the case noted that Neymar had avoided paying income tax by transferring his image rights to his companies.
Neymar can appeal the ruling, but when Folha contacted the Brazilian star’s legal counsel for comment, they refrained, noting that they would prefer to remain silent until further notice.
Neymar had assets worth €42 million frozen earlier
The same Brazilian federal court had previously frozen Neymar’s assets, as the Brazilian star had only declared an income of $5 miliion. The judge overseeing the case, Carlos Muta, did not absolve the Barcelona star from any third party fault, saying “[Neymar] is solely responsible for the income declaration.”
Neymar’s tax headaches are not limited to Brazil, as the Barcelona frontman is under investigation by a Spanish court over his transfer from Santos to Barcelona, a case in which he had testified earlier this year along with his father, Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu and his predecessor, Sandro Rosell.
Neymar’s off-field problems are in stark contrast to his exploits on the pitch, as the Barcelona star is in fine form this season, last scoring in Barcelona’s UEFA Champions League victory over Arsenal. The Blaugrana have been drawn with Atletico Madrid in the quarterfinals, an opponent that Neymar thrives against, having scored six goals against them over two seasons.