Court turns down indictment of Neymar and FC Barcelona

Federal Court Judge Mateus da Silva turned down the Federal Prosecutor's Office (MPF) indictment of footballer Neymar Júnior, his father, Neymar Santos, and Josep Maria Floreta and Alexander Rosell Feliu, executives at Barcelona football club, on charges of tax evasion and forgery.

According to the court decision, there is a pending administrative investigation on tax violations, so prosecutors must wait until the final ruling in the existing proceedings before pressing criminal charges. The judge endorsed the confidentiality of the case “to protect the privacy of suspects.”

The tax evasion and forgery charge was filed by prosecutors against the footballer, his father, and the Barcelona executives on January 27. According to the MPF, the indictees forged documents between 2006 and 2013 in order to reduce their payable taxes.

The complaint includes fraud in contracts for use of Neymar Jr.'s image rights while he was a player with Santos football club from 2006, and during his transfer to FC Barcelona, which began to be negotiated in 2011.

In a statement, the Federal Prosecutor's Office in São Paulo said it has not been officially notified of the court decision, and argued it does not mean an acquittal, but an order to wait. Once notified, the prosecutors say they will appeal, invoking past high court rulings that there is no need to wait on administrative proceedings in cases where the tax evasion scheme involves shell companies.

Translated by Mayra Borges