BARCELONA
Case Closed: Neymar and Barcelona's High Court case
Judge De la Mata has thrown the 'Neymar Case' out of the Spanish High Court, in a victory for the Barcelona legal team over one of the most controversial signings in the club's history.
Barcelona have emerged victorious from a High-Court ruling after judge De la Mata 'archived' the Neymar case that alleged fraud in his transfer from Brazilian club Santos. In what has turned out to be the most controversial signing in recent Barcelona history.
Alleged fraud
Prosecutors from Spain's top criminal court accused Neymar, his father, Barca's ex-president Sandro Rosell and the club itself of concealing the cost of the multi-million-euro transfer from Brazilian investment fund DIS.
DIS held 40 percent of the 24-year-old's sporting rights when he played at Brazil's Santos club and has claimed it was cheated of its real share of transfer due to parallel contracts that Barcelona and Santos allegedly used to hide the total cost.
"I'm not a criminal" - Neymar
"I didn’t do anything wrong,” the Brazilian star told ‘IstoÉ 2016’ magazine last week: “I’m not a criminal and neither is my dad".
Final Ruling
After many months of deliberation, judge De la Mata decided that there was not sufficient evidence to continue the investigation, as he explained on Catalan radio station Catalunya Radio. The ruling clears both the player and the club, with Neymar currently in Brazil preparing for the Olympic Games in Rio. Neymar will be back in Barcelona on July 15 to confirm his contract extension and sign with the blaugranas until 2021.