Messi £224k penalty after £3.6m fraud
LIONEL Messi will face a £224,000 fine after being convicted of a £3.6million tax fiddle.
If the Barcelona star, 30 today, does not pay the cash – less than a week’s earnings – he faces a 21-month suspended prison sentence.
Messi and his father Jorge defrauded Spanish authorities of £3.6million between 2007 and 2009.
The pair were convicted of using tax havens in Belize and Uruguay.
Messi, on £254,000-aweek, has already been fined £1.8million. His dad was fined £1.3million and the pair gave £4.4million to cover the unpaid tax.
Under the Spanish legal system, prison terms of under two years are served under probation.