In a resolution of great institutional impact dated July 1, the head of the National Criminal and Correctional Court No. 4, Dr. Ariel Lijo, ordered the dismissal and filing of the proceedings in case No. 10202/2018. After an investigation that lasted eight years, the Justice concluded that it was appropriate to definitively dissociate Lionel Messi, his father Jorge Messi, his brothers Rodrigo and Matías Messi, and the Leo Messi Foundation from the accusations of alleged money laundering, forgery of public documents, and tax evasion.
The magistrate was emphatic in stating that maintaining the investigation under the current conditions would imply an “inadmissible 'fishing expedition'”, a practice he described as “incompatible with the principles of legality, objectivity, and rationality that govern criminal proceedings”. This ruling sets a limit on the use of state punitive power when attempting to investigate an individual without a “well-founded suspicion”, thereby protecting citizens from arbitrary persecution.
The case originated on June 26, 2018, following a complaint by Fernando Míguez, president of the Foundation for Peace and Climate Change of Argentina, based solely on journalistic publications.
This was supplemented by the testimony of Federico Rettori, a former collaborator of the entity who reported alleged irregularities in the management of funds and social projects. However, the work of the legal defense, led by Matías Cúneo Libarona and Sebastián Castro Cranwell, managed to dismantle each of the suspicions.
Throughout the investigation, exhaustive evidentiary measures were taken, including:
