El Mundo, Spain’s second largest printed daily newspaper, reports that Luka Modrić admitted to tax evasion and came to an agreement with the Spanish court.
Spanish newspaper El Mundo announced this morning that Luka Modrić confessed to tax evasion in Spain. The same source also said he paid close to one million euros to escape a possible prison sentence. The captain of the Croatian national team allegedly wanted the money to be paid before the hearing before the judge as a sign of good will. El Mundo learned of Modric's intention from sources in the Tax Administration, reports Gol.hr on January 9, 2018.
Luka Modrić is said to have appeared in court around noon but did not want to make any statements. Croatian journalist Miho Dobrašin was also present, to which the State Attorney's Office announced confirmation of El Mundo’s claim after Modrić appeared in court.
The indictment against Modrić and his wife Vanja was raised late last year. After moving from Tottenham to Real Madrid in 2012, Modrić founded the company Ivano S.a.r.l. in Luxembourg, to which he transferred commercial rights to use his name for marketing purposes and thus avoided paying the tax at a rate of 30 percent in Spain in 2013 and 2014. Therefore, Spanish taxpayers accused him and his wife of having deprived the tax administration of at least 870,728 euros.
The situation came to light when Football Leaks released unsettling information about some of the most famous footballers back in 2016. Modric's Madrid attorney, who defends Cristiano Ronaldo, did not want to comment on the case.
Modrić is one of several former and current Real Madrid players against whom an indictment was filed. His teammate, Real Madrid defender Marcelo (29), recently admitted in court that he evaded nearly 500,000 euros in taxes and pledged to pay the amount.
We must recall that Luka Modrić is also under the umbrella of the Croatian prosecutor's office. An investigation was initiated against him in Osijek after he was accused of giving false testimony at the trial of Zdravko Mamić. Modrić is said to have claimed one story to USKOK, while changing his statement in court. The prosecution has yet to collect evidence that Modrić lied, though he could also receive an indictment in Croatia.
Translated from Gol.hr
