Lionel Messi denied knowing about the tax situation that turned into a fraud scandal, wrote lrytas.lt.
"Barcelona" football star stood before the court on Thursday - the third day - in a case of tax evasion and claimed that he signed documents without delving into what was written there.
L. Messi said he trusted his father and advisors, who were responsible for the Argentine's finances.
"I knew nothing. I only cared about football," the 28-year-old striker said in court.
Dressed in a dark suit and tie, L. Messi sat next to his father and listened to other people's testimonies. He waited for almost four hours before being called to testify. This was the third day of the trial. According to the "Associated Press," the Barcelona footballer sometimes seemed impatient in court.
In a speech of less than 15 minutes, L. Messi said he did not even suspect that something was wrong when his father asked him to sign contract documents.
"I signed everything he told me to sign because I trusted my father. I trusted my father and the lawyers said I could do it," Messi said.
He emphasized that he did not even suspect that part of the income came through companies created in countries such as Uruguay, Switzerland, or Belize. All this was done to avoid the tax burden in Spain.
lrytas.lt
