Cristiano Ronaldo has been in terrific form this season, scoring a total of 27 goals in 28 matches and providing 11 assists. The Al-Nassr superstar currently sits at the top of the goal-scoring list in the league. Even though Al-Nassr’s performances are a bit shaky, Ronaldo has shown that he is the go-to player for the club most of the time.
The record-breaking superstar recently broke another record after his goal against Al-Fateh as he surpassed his fierce rival, Lionel Messi. However, despite his stardom, CR7 nearly found himself behind the bars after allegedly evading tax during his time in Madrid.
Why did Cristiano Ronaldo not go to jail for his 2018 prison sentence?
The Portuguese superstar was once involved in a tax evasion case in which he was accused of defrauding the Spanish authorities of a hefty sum of €14.3 million. The former Real Madrid superstar was found guilty of defrauding the Spanish tax agency and thus was given a sentence of 2 years in prison by the Spanish court.
However, this time the Spanish law saved Cristiano from the jail sentence. As per Spanish law, the first time non-criminal offenders are spared from the conviction of the prison sentence if the sentence term is 2 years or less. Thus, Ronaldo was able to dodge the prison sentence but was served under probation.
WATCH: A smiling Cristiano Ronaldo appears in a Madrid court as he avoids 2 years in jail by paying a 19 million euro fine to tax fraud charges pic.twitter.com/EsnAFlFSCl
— Bloomberg Originals (@bbgoriginals) January 22, 2019
Cristiano Ronaldo later pleaded guilty to tax fraud in Madrid court
The Portuguese forward was back in Madrid after his transfer from Real Madrid to Juventus. After four long years of investigation, he was found guilty in the defrauding case.
As per the Guardian, from 2011 to 2014, Cristiano had earned a total of €43 million through various income sources; however, he was alleged by the state prosecutor, who proved that Cristiano deliberately reported the false income of €11.5 million while hiding an amount of €28.4 million, which he earned through the image rights of shell companies outside Spain.
Instead of serving his prison sentence under Spanish law, Cristiano signed an agreement with the State Prosecutors and the Spanish Tax Agency where he had to pay a fine of €19 million, including interest. After 45 minutes inside the court, he came out with a smile but didn’t greet the fans. He later went on to post a selfie inside an airplane with the caption,” it’s done.”
The Real Madrid superstar was not the only one accused in a tax evasion case. His former Madrid teammate Xabi Alonso, as well as rival Lionel Messi, were both found guilty of defrauding the Spanish authorities and had to pay a heavy sum.
