Neymar Cleared Of Criminal Charges In '15 Tax Evasion Case, Father Says

Neymar's father said that the Barcelona player has been "cleared of any criminal charges in a long-running tax evasion case in Brazil," according to Andrew Downie of REUTERS. In a statement, Neymar Sr. said, "It is with great happiness that we received the news of the shelving of the Public Ministry's case of tax evasion. The process is officially closed (and) that proves the legality of all our acts." In '15, Brazil's federal tax office charged Neymar with evading R$63M in taxes due on income earned from Brasileiro side Santos, Barcelona and sponsors between '11 and '14. Neymar appealed last year and a court ruling in his favor in March halved the penalty of R$200M in fines, back-taxes and interest that Brazil's tax office had "slapped on the player." The 25-year-old "still faced the prospect, however, of a separate criminal prosecution brought by federal prosecutors" (REUTERS, 7/26).