Barcelona and Argentina star Lionel Messi has been sentenced to 21 months in jail in Spain for tax fraud - although Spanish laws mean that he will not serve any time in prison.
Criminals sentenced to less than two years can be suspended under Spanish law - as shown by Messi's Barcelona teammate Javier Mascherano, who was sentenced to 12 months in jail for tax offences of his own.
BREAKING: Spanish court sentences Barcelona soccer star Lionel Messi to 21 months in prison, fines him 2 million euros for three tax crimes
— Reuters Sports (@ReutersSports) July 6, 2016
Prosecutors in the trial said tax havens in Belize and Uruguay were used to conceal earnings from image rights, but the player insisted in 2013:
Confirmed: Lionel Messi has been given a 21-month prison sentence for tax fraud. #FCB pic.twitter.com/dqCJ6Xw59L
— MARCA in English (@MARCAinENGLISH) July 6, 2016
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