Cristiano Ronaldo in Court Over ‘Tax Evasion’

Real Madrid Forward, Cristiano Ronaldo appeared in a Madrid court on Monday following a tax evasion suit filed against him by the Spanish tax authority.
He is accused of evading millions of euros in taxes.

The 32-year-old entered the court through an underground garage in a car with tainted windows in other to avoid the dozens of pressmen and their cameras gathered outside.

Prosecutors accuse the Portuguese international footballer of having evaded 14.7 million euros ($17.3 million) in tax.

They allege he took “advantage of a company structure created in 2010 to hide income generated in Spain from his image rights from tax authorities”.

Prosecutors also accuse Ronaldo of evading tax via a shell company based in the British Virgin Islands and another in Ireland, known for low corporate tax rates.

In addition, they say Ronaldo only declared 11.5 million euros of Spanish-related income from 2011 to 2014, while what he really earned during that time was close to 43 million euros.
And finally, they accuse him of “voluntarily” refusing to include 28.4 million euros in income linked to the sale of his image rights for the 2015 to 2020 period to a Spanish company.

The four-time world player of the year is expected to plead not guilty during his closed door court appearance. He has defended himself, saying his “conscience is clear”.
Ronaldo who is ranked as the world’s highest paid athlete by Forbes Magazine is the latest player to fall foul of Spain’s taxman; after the likes of Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, who was found guilty of the offence last year.
Also, former player Angel di Maria, Portuguese defender Fabio Coentrao and Jose Mourinho, who coached the club from 2010 to 2013, have all been accused of tax fraud.