On August 30, Ronaldinho will once again have the opportunity to explain his potential role in the fraud case.
Brazilian authorities have reportedly launched an investigation into one of the greatest football players of all time, Ronaldo de Assis Moreira, better known as Ronaldinho, over his possible involvement in a cryptocurrency scam.
The athlete was called to testify in the matter but did not appear in court and did not provide an explanation for his absence.
Expected to appear in court next week
According to recent reports, the former star of FC Barcelona, AC Milan and the Brazilian national football team was suspected of being involved in a fraud by a dubious company called "18kRonaldinho". The scheme offered generous but false profits of 2% per day to those who invested at least $30 in digital currencies. Ronaldinho appeared as an ambassador for the entity, which earlier sold watches and jewelry.
The 2005 Ballon d'Or winner did not appear in court to further shed light on his potential role in the company. Interestingly, even if he had appeared, he would have had the opportunity to remain silent before the county magistrate.
Ronaldinho, source: Wikipedia
Rio de Janeiro federal lawmaker Aurelio Lidio Moreira Ribeiro said authorities had summoned Ronaldinho to appear before a designated court on August 30. He warned that if he failed to appear again, law enforcement officials might "use force."
The athlete's lawyers insist their client was actually the victim of a scam, claiming criminals were illegally using his image and name to defraud more people.
The fallen investors who uncovered the case are seeking to recover 300 million reais (nearly $61 million) to compensate for the emotional and material losses caused to them by the underlying scam.
Ronaldinho has joined the cryptocurrency bandwagon
While the aforementioned case is still to unfold, it’s worth noting that Brazilians joined the cryptocurrency ecosystem (legally) over a year ago.
Last February, he partnered with Graph Blockchain subsidiary New World Inc. to become an ambassador for the organization, introducing the NFT experience to his many fans. Ronaldinho, known for his always smiling attitude while playing football and his respectful attitude towards his opponents on the court, has a wide range of supporters and has nearly 75 million followers on Instagram.
A few months later, the athlete signed another agreement to launch his own token RON in partnership with the decentralized exchange P00LS. #巴西 #加密诈骗
