Prosecutors would swap prison for fine in Messi tax fraud case - press
MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's state prosecutor would accept substituting a fine of 255,000 euros (224,554 pounds) for the 21-month prison sentence handed down by a Barcelona court to soccer player Lionel Messi for tax fraud, Barcelona newspaper La Vanguardia reported on Friday. Messi and his father Jorge were found guilty by a Catalan court last July on three counts of tax fraud between 2007 and 2009 to the tune of 4.1 million euros on image rights and were also fined 2 million euros. Spain's Supreme Court rejected in May an appeal by the Barcelona football star and stood by a Catalan regional court's 21-month prison sentence. The state prosecutor was not immediately available to comment on Friday. (Reporting By Sonya Dowsett; Editing by Paul Day)
