Spanish court clears Neymar, co-defendants of all charges in fraud case

A Spanish court has acquitted Brazil soccer star Neymar and other defendants in a fraud and corruption case over his 2013 transfer to Barcelona from Santos after prosecutors had dropped all charges in the high-profile trial, the court said in a statement.

The suit had been brought by Brazilian investment firm DIS, the owner of 40% of the rights to Neymar when he was at Santos. He now plays for Paris Saint-Germain, Reuters reported.

DIS argued it had lost out on a cut from the transfer because its true value was understated and sought a five-year jail term for Neymar and a total fine of 149 million euros ($157 million) for the defendants.

In October, prosecutor Luis Garcia Canton asked the Barcelona court to acquit all defendants as there was “not the slightest hint of a crime”.