The camp of Lionel Messi has dismissed the reports that the Barcelona superstar will be shouldering the cost of the efforts to free Ronaldinho from imprisonment in Paraguay. Following the arrest and detention of the Brazilian football legend, stories circulated that Messi will fork out £3.25 million in legal fees for Ronaldinho's case.
However, it appeared now that Messi helping his former teammate financially was just an unverified news article published by a local newspaper in Peru. The truth is the Argentine ace was saddened by the misfortunes that Ronaldinho is dealing with at the moment, but the pledge to pay for the latter's court battles is yet to be made.
"At no time has he made any economic or judicial movement to remove the Brazilian ex-footballer from jail," Marca said in a report, citing the statement issued by Messi's entourage.
"He has not put his lawyers to work on the case nor is he going to pay the four million euros of bail," the report added.
At the very least, Messi has made no commitment to helping out the former World Cup winner, who is facing up to six months of incarceration in Paraguay. The Brazilian is accused of holding forged passports, and his appeal of temporary release has been rejected by a local court.
Ronaldinho is regarded as a flight risk, so the decision was made to keep him in detention, per reports by the local media in Paraguay.
According to The Sun, the former AC Milan star was arrested just over a week following a tip-off that he and his brother, Roberto de Assis, entered the country illegally. It was initially thought that the two would merely face fines and deported, but prosecutors decided to order a deeper probe.
Days after the arrest, the charge sheet brought against the brothers has been modified and now included money laundering. Facing up a more serious accusation, a local court handling Ronaldinho's case has indicated that giving the former footballer temporary liberty could lead to him escaping.
In the most recent development, the plea by his legal team for him to be placed under house arrest has been thrown out despite offers to make property bonds.
"The decision makes it more likely the pair will have to sit out the next six months behind bars," the report said.
Ronaldinho's lawyers also claimed that their client had been duped into receiving the fake documents and were made to believe they were getting gifts in exchange for attending a charitable event.
Meanwhile, prison officials said the football legend has been keeping himself busy by playing ball with fellow detainees and that Ronaldinho has already scored five goals in an ongoing tournament.
