The investigation into Juventus‘ potential financial fraud continues and according to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the Turin prosecutor believes the club destroyed confidential documents, including a private agreement with Cristiano Ronaldo.
Offices were raided in multiple cities all over Italy yesterday as part of the investigation regarding Juventus’ potential financial fraud. Investigators are now focusing on the agreements reached by the Old Lady to cut players’ wages in March 2020, after the suspension of Serie A due to the COVID pandemic.
“The economic and financial effects of the understanding reached are positive for about €90m for the 2019/2020 financial year,” Juventus said in a statement. “The understanding provides for the reduction of the compensation for an amount equal to the monthly payments of March, April, May and June 2020.”
That decision caused a positive financial effect of circa €90m, but the Turin prosecutor believes that Juventus players eventually received at least €60m through private agreements with the club, which have not been reported.
Legal offices raided as part of Juventus fraud investigation
Among the documents seized in the club’s headquarters, investigators found ‘several private records variously denominated as part of the two wage manoeuvres for the financial years 2019-2020 2020-21 and not deposited with the competent bodies.’
According to the report, the headquarters of the World Soccer Agency, belonging to agent Alessandro Lucci, was also raided yesterday. Lucci is the representative of Leonardo Bonucci, Juan Cuadrado, Mattia Perin and Dejan Kulusevski, who joined Tottenham in January.
Investigators believe that Juventus players didn’t give up on wages but only saw payments postponed. Some of the agreements with the footballers were deposited with the Lega Calcio, but others were allegedly private agreements kept hidden from the competent bodies.
Some of those private agreements were found in the club’s emails and would grant the salary payment even in case of a future transfer. Investigators highlight the habit of keeping some of these confidential documents outside the club’s headquarters, destroying them once the agreements were fulfilled. Among them, there could be a private deal with Cristiano Ronaldo, mentioned in a phone-tapping between club directors but that investigators have not found.