Ronaldo tax-fraud case: The Juventus forward appeared in the court in Madrid for hearing on the tax-fraud case earlier today.
Cristiano Ronaldo appeared in the court on Tuesday in Madrid for the hearing on the tax-fraud case.
The forward has accepted an €18.8m deal with the court in an appearance which lasted mere minutes, according to BBC. He was also given a 23-month prison sentence under the deal, but Spanish law exempts jail-time for sentences under two years.
As Ronaldo’s offence is of non-violent nature, the footballer will not have to serve any jail time at all.
A throng of media reporters were greeted by Ronaldo outside the court.
Ronaldo tax fraud case:
The Spanish law stipulates that Ronaldo needs to appear in the Spanish court to formalise the proceedings, after the court rejected a legal settlement of €375,000 to avoid the appearance.
According to reports in Spain, Ronaldo committed four years’ worth of tax fraud between 2011 and 2014, amounting to a total of €14,768,897.
The imposition of the sentence has been restricted to two years, as his is the first offence and anything under two years and one day doesn’t require a custodial sentence.
In simpler terms, Ronaldo will not serve time in jail under the settlement because the Spanish law states that a sentence of under two years for a first offence can be served on probation.
Ronaldo’s case is now officially closed after his appearance in the Spanish court.
The cases of tax fraud in Spain:
Earlier, Ronaldo’s former Real Madrid teammate Marcelo was also found guilty of tax fraud. He admitted to a four-month suspended prison sentence and will have to pay a fine of £670,000 after admitting to tax fraud.
Along with him, the Manchester United duo of Alexis Sanchez and Jose Mourinho was also accused of tax fraud last year.
During his time at the Santiago Bernabeu, Jose Mourinho was accused of defrauding the Spanish tax authorities of €1.9m.
Manchester United’s forward Alexis Sanchez was handed a 16-month prison sentence for a similar case. He was accused of tax-fraud during his time at FC Barcelona. However, he was exempted from serving prison-time due to being a first-time offender.
Cristiano Ronaldo, meanwhile, is involved in another legal battle over allegations of sexual assault. The forward has denied the charges.
