Breaking! Neymar charged with fraud and corruption, five-year jail term looks likely

In what comes as a big news for Brazil football fans, their star player, Neymar has been charged with fraud and corruption. Apparently, he got into this much trouble after his transfer to Barcelona from Santos way back in 2013. At that time, the star player was bought at 4.17 Billions INR. He played for the four for four years. However, in relation to the deal, a Brazilian investment firm DIS demanded a five-year jail term.

The company has claimed that they were owed more than they received due to their partial rights to Neymar at the time. DIS owned 40% of the rights when Neymar played for Santos. The company claims that they have lost a substantial amount. The charges have been leveled at the time when Brazil is gearing up for the FIFA World Cup 2022. The tournament will be played in Qatar next month.

“Neymar’s rights have not been sold to the highest bidder. There were clubs that offered up to 60 million euros,” DIS lawyer Paulo Nasser told a news conference in Barcelona on Thursday.

Neymar has his own free will: Baker McKenzie

Neymar’s defender, Baker McKenzie, has said that the rules of free competition doesn’t apply on player transfers. Baker isnot just representing Neymar but also the likes of former Barca presidents Josep Maria Bartomeu and Sandro Rosell, and former Santos president Odilio Rodrigues. Notably, these parties have been names as ‘parents’ of Neymar in the case. Baker will argue that the Spanish courts “lack jurisdiction to prosecute the Neymar family” since the transfer involved Brazilian nationals in Brazil.

“The rules of free competition do not operate since the transfer from one club to another depends on the free will of the player,” a Baker McKenzie spokesman told Reuters.

“The player is not a service or a commodity. He is a person of his own free will,” he added, saying Santos granted Neymar a written authorisation to negotiate with other clubs in 2011.