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| Cristiano Ronaldo appears in court on tax charges | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Footballer Cristiano Ronaldo has arrived at a Spanish court amid allegations he evaded millions in tax. | |
| Prosecutors accuse Ronaldo, reported to be the world's highest paid athlete, of evading €14.7m ($17.3m; £13.1m) in tax since 2010. | |
| The Real Madrid star has previously denied the allegation, saying his "conscience is clear". | The Real Madrid star has previously denied the allegation, saying his "conscience is clear". |
| Ronaldo, 32, is the latest in a string of footballers to be pursued by the Spanish tax authorities. | Ronaldo, 32, is the latest in a string of footballers to be pursued by the Spanish tax authorities. |
| Argentina's Lionel Messi, who plays for Barcelona, was handed a 21-month prison sentence after being found guilty of the same charge last year. | Argentina's Lionel Messi, who plays for Barcelona, was handed a 21-month prison sentence after being found guilty of the same charge last year. |
| Earlier this month, the court ruled he could pay €252,000 in place of jail time. | Earlier this month, the court ruled he could pay €252,000 in place of jail time. |
| However, Messi was only accused of evading €4.1m in tax, €10.6m less than Ronaldo. | |
| Ronalda arrived to give evidence at a court in the Madrid suburb of Pozuelo de Alarcon just before 11:00 local time (09:00 GMT) on Monday. | |
| According to prosecutors, Ronaldo allegedly took "advantage of a company structure created in 2010 to hide income generated in Spain from his image rights from tax authorities" which was a "voluntary and conscious breach of his fiscal obligations in Spain". | According to prosecutors, Ronaldo allegedly took "advantage of a company structure created in 2010 to hide income generated in Spain from his image rights from tax authorities" which was a "voluntary and conscious breach of his fiscal obligations in Spain". |
| Ronaldo's management have also denied the allegations. | Ronaldo's management have also denied the allegations. |
| But if the case is sent to trial and he is found guilty, the Portuguese forward could face a fine of "at least €28m" and a prison sentence of three-and-a-half years, the Gestha union of experts at Spain's Inland Revenue says. | But if the case is sent to trial and he is found guilty, the Portuguese forward could face a fine of "at least €28m" and a prison sentence of three-and-a-half years, the Gestha union of experts at Spain's Inland Revenue says. |