Court accuses Adriano of tax fraud

The public prosecutor has accused Adriano of defrauding the Spanish state by almost €650,000 as another Barcelona player is embroiled in a tax scandal.

According to a court in Barcelona, Marca reports, the Economic Crimes Prosecutor has accused the player of committing two tax crimes against Hacienda in the 2011 and 2012 financial years.

The investigation stems from a report by the country’s tax agency, which found that Adriano had not included the income from selling his image rights to Barca.

Furthermore, Adriano is claimed to have avoided paying taxes through a dual mechanism, which consisted of hiding his income from a contract he signed with Nike in 2011, worth €63,304.44, and then simulating the sale of his image rights via an offshore company in Madeira, Portugal.

Upon signing for Barca in July 2010, the left-back exclusively sold his image rights to Barca for €435,000, which increased to €595,000 euros in the 2014-2015 season.

He then contributed €178,310 and €149,047 in 2011 and 2012 respectively but did not pay tax on the aforementioned €646,085 earned from his image rights.

The court did acknowledge, however, that the former Sevilla man covered the outstanding amount in full on March 7, so a judge must now decide whether a trial is still necessary.

Adriano’s teammates Lionel Messi and Javier Mascherano have been accused of similar acts, while Barca remain implicated in the controversy relating to Neymar’s move from Santos in 2013.

Tags Adriano Tax
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