Barcelona President accused of fraud over €30m in commissions from transfers | OneFootball

Former Barcelona President Josep Maria Bartomeu has been accused of fraud due to irregularities found in the club’s payment of transfers during his tenure. He has been called to give evidence by a court in Barcelona on the matter.

That is according to Cadena SER, who say that the investigating magistrate has called Bartomeu to explain said irregularities. The legal case was opened by current Barcelona President and Bartomeu’s successor, Joan Laporta, evidence of the fierce political divide that exists at the club.

Bartomeu to testify on Barcelona transfers

Bartomeu will appear in court on the 24th of October, as will former Barcelona CEO Oscar Grau, both of whom are accused of fraud. Lawyer Josee Angel Gonzalez Franco will also give evidence on the fourth of December, due to his role in Antoine Griezmann’s €120m move from Atletico Madrid in 2019.

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Laporta’s complaint alleges that Bartomeu’s handling of several deals led to the loss of €30m from the club accounts, and his case was backed up by a report from a detective agency (Kroll), who put together a forensic report on the club’s finances. Bartomeu and his board are accused of fraud, misappropriation of funds, and forgery.

Three transfers have raised suspicions

The current board say that some deals included commissions of 33%, and that certain businesses were founded solely to bill the club. The most egregious commission appears to have occurred in the €40m deal to take Malcom from Bordeaux to the club, who then paid a commission of €10m on the deal. That contract allegedly was signed ‘some time after’ the signing was sealed.

Meanwhile payments to the above mentioned Gonzalez Franco allegedly saw him earn €1.7m in the deal to sign Neymar Junior from Santos, and charge significant fees related to the signing of Antoine Griezmann. Laporta’s complaint goes on to allege that there was a consistent and methodical approach to avoiding financial controls, and that an ‘illegitimate payment’ of €15m was made to Atletico Madrid. This was allegedly to avoid Atletico taking the Blaugrana to court over their approach for Griezmann.

Further legal trouble for Bartomeu

This occurs just weeks after Bartomeu testified in court regarding the Negreira case, in which he is accused of fraud and sporting corruption. Bartomeu has denied any wrongdoing in this case, and reportedly denied any knowledge that the then Vice-President of the Referees Committee Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira was behind the firm that Barcelona had contracted for reports on officials. Bartomeu has also been accused of diverting club funds for personal use.