Barcelona superstar Neymar’s troubles with the Spanish authorities continued when a fraud case against the player and his father was reopened on Friday following a successful appeal by Spanish prosecutors, a court filing showed.
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The court asked to prosecute the forward, his father, Barca’s former president Sandro Rosell and Neymar’s previous team, Brazilian side Santos.
The case was thrown out in July by judge Jose de la Mata due to a lack of evidence, but a group of magistrates led by Angela Murillo claim to have found evidence of fraud and corruption and have therefore chose to reopen the investigation.
According to the prosecutor, this act “altered the transfer market and the player’s procurement” when faced with a €36 million offer from Real Madrid (more than Barcelona had formally offered) and saw Neymar opt “to go through other means not allowed by Federation Internationale de Football Association”.
An investigation into Barcelona’s signing of Neymar will be reopened over suspicions of fraud and corruption, Spanish news agency EFE reports.
Last week La Liga announced it will investigate Barca over the deal.
Santos – the Brazilian club of a young Pele and where Neymar started his career – received just €17.1 million, €6.8 million of which went to DIS.
Two contracts from November and December 2011 were re-examined and it is claimed that the €40 million payment made by Barca to the player to guarantee his signing infringes the “free transfer market” for footballers.
Both Brazilian club Santos and Barcelona came under fire for the way the transfer was handled in 2013, with several investigations carried out in both countries into whether any part of Neymar’s fee had been concealed.
The sentences become suspended terms if the convictions are not violence related and are under two-year terms.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique says that Messi, Suarez, and Neymar are all aware they can’t play every match for the club.
Earlier this year, Neymar extended his contract with Barcelona until 2021.
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Barca have won back-to-back Spanish league and Cup doubles with the trio and the Champions League in 2015.
