Alexis Sanchez Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud Charges in Spain

Alexis Sanchez Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud Charges in Spain

Arsenal star forward Alexis Sanchez on Monday admitted to defrauding the Spanish taxman of €983 443 during his time at FC Barcelona.

Following his guilty plea, Sanchez, 28, could be slapped a fine and a possibly a non-custodial prison sentence as is the practice in Spain, SuperSport writes

According to a judicial source, the Chile international, who gave evidence via video link from London, “recognised a tax error which he has settled with the Spanish Treasury.”

He reportedly admitted that his tax declarations for 2012 and 2013 had not included profits from his image rights, which transited through a holding company based in Malta.

Also, he admitted that he had not stated that he owned the said holding company, Numidia Trading Limited.

Spanish football has been marred with cases of tax evasion and avoidance over the past years, with Sanchez’s former Barcelona teammate Javier Mascherano bagging a one-year prison term in January 2016 and fined €815 000 for tax fraud.

Similarly, Barcelona and Argentina superstar Lionel Messi and his father were also sentenced to 21 months in prison and fined €2.2 million in July 2016 for tax fraud over the player’s image rights that dated back to 2007.

Meanwhile, reigning ballon d’Or holder Cristiano Ronaldo is facing charges of tax fraud to the tune of €150 million.