Modric could face up to five years in prison

REAL MADRID star Luka Modric is under investigation for suspected perjury after giving evidence in the trial of Zdravko Mamic, the Croatia State Attorney Office has revealed.

Modric faces, according to the Croatian penal system, a prison sentence ranging anywhere from six months to five years if he is found guilty.

The former Tottenham man is one of the key witnesses in the trial of Mamic, a former chief executive at Dinamo Zagreb, where Modric played before joining Tottenham in 2008.

Among other things including embezzlement and tax fraud, Mamic is charged with illegally keeping a big chunk of the transfer fee from Spurs for himself rather than for Dinamo.

The investigation showed he did keep it and the defence is not even trying to deny that, but they claim there was nothing unlawful about it.

The disputed part is the contract between Dinamo and Modric which contained an annex specifying the fee was to be shared on the 50-50 basis between the club and the player.

Mamic became Dinamo chief executive and negotiated the deal himself and what the prosecution is trying to demonstrate is that the annex was only signed and backdated after the player had already been sold.

Modric initially confirmed this was the case, but later changed the details of his initial statement and claimed he got confused.– The Independent