The Spanish prosecutor dropped his charges against Neymar, but a Brazilian company involved in the case will continue to fight the footballer in court.
Spain’s state prosecutor dropped his charges against Neymar on Friday, but a Brazilian company involved in the case will continue to fight the footballer in court.
The case stems from Neymar’s 2013 transfer from Santos to Barcelona.
The prosecutor withdrew all charges against Neymar, his father and former executives of the Brazilian and Spanish associations. However, the trial will continue because the Brazilian company DIS, which brought the case, maintained its allegation that the parties involved committed fraud and corruption.
DIS claims that it was paid far less than the 40% it says it is as a partial owner of Neymar’s player rights.
The public prosecutor announced the decision to drop the case after hearing testimony from former Barcelona executives Sandro Rosella and Josep Bartomeu on Friday. State prosecutor Luis García told the court that he saw no evidence that the crime had been committed.
All defendants deny any violations.
State prosecutors had sought a two-year prison sentence and a fine of 10 million euros ($10 million) for Neymar. They also wanted five years for Rosell and three years for Santos’ former president, Odilio Rodrigues.
Neymar, who now plays for Paris Saint-Germain, told the court last week that he had “followed my heart and chosen Barça.”
DIS is seeking five years in prison for 30-year-old Neymar, his father Rosell and Bartomeu. The DIS also wants compensation of EUR 34 million ($34 million) and a fine of EUR 195 million ($194 million) that the defendant would pay to the Spanish state.
“According to the DIS, no new evidence has emerged in the five days of this trial justifying a change of position on what happened,” the SAD said in a statement shared with the Associated Press.
DIS, which owns a supermarket chain in Brazil’s S pauloo Paulo region, said it won the right to receive 40% of Neymar’s future transfer amount in 2009 when it paid Neymar’s family $5 million (then 2 million U.S. dollars).
DIS said it received only a reasonable percentage from 17 million euros ($17 million) that Barcelona and Santos initially announced as transfer fees between clubs, while the actual cost was around 82 million euros ($82 million).
The trial is expected to end on Monday.
