Former Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu and his entourage were detained by the police in connection with a corruption investigation, and the club's office was searched.
In addition to the former head of the blue garnet, the executive director Oscar Grau, Bartomeu's advisor - Jaume Masferrer - and Roma Gomez Ponti, responsible for legal services, were taken into custody.
This was reported by the Spanish media.
According to their information, this operation is associated with a scandal that arose in early 2020 and was dubbed "Barsagate" in the press.
Reports of searches in Barcelona's offices began to arrive the day before.
It was noted that the inspection was carried out by the Catalonian police Mossos d'Esquadra, and the main interest of law enforcement officers was focused on the financial, legal divisions and the internal control department.
Around the same time, news of the arrest of Bartomeu, as well as three other former employees of the club - Grau, Masferrer and Ponti, appeared.
During the searches, according to press reports, law enforcement officials found signs of possible mismanagement of the club and corruption among Barcelona's senior officials.
All this only hastened the detention process.
As a result, Bartomeu and Masferrer spent the night at the station, although they received the right not to testify, and Grau and Ponti were released, the media noted.
Subsequently, the press service of Barcelona commented on the situation with searches in the offices of the team and the detention of former leaders.
The club clarified what exactly the check was connected with and assured that they were cooperating with the investigation.
“Regarding the searches carried out this morning by the Catalan police in the Camp Nou offices by order of the Investigative Court No. 13 in Barcelona, which is considering a case on the use of monitoring services in social networks, FC Barcelona has expressed its readiness to fully cooperate with judicial and police authorities to clarify the facts that are the subject of the investigation.
The information and documents requested by the judicial police relate only to those facts that are relevant to the case.
Barcelona have great respect for the ongoing legal process, as well as for the principle of the presumption of innocence in relation to the persons affected by this investigation, ”the club said.
Thus, the Catalan team indirectly confirmed that the detentions and searches are related to the scandal that took place in early 2020 and was named Barsagate.
The Catalan division of the Cadena SER radio station published the results of its own investigation, in which it accused the current management of Barcelona of paying € 1 million to the analytical company I3 Ventures for creating a positive image of Bartomeu on social networks.
It was noted that a number of accounts allegedly published messages in support of the head of the "blaugrana", as well as criticism of his rivals, including the leaders of the current squad - Lionel Messi and Gerard Piquet, blue garnet legends - Xavi, Carles Puyol and Pep Guardiola , presidential candidates - Agusti Benedito and Victor Font.
In addition, Bartomeu was suspected of corruption.
It was said that the functionary entered into agreements on behalf of Barcelona, but the funds went not to the club's treasury, but personally to its president.
In the same context, it was pointed out to an agreement with I3 Ventures, according to which the analytical company was paid an amount six times higher than the market for this type of service.
It is worth noting that in many respects it was precisely these accusations and the scandal that erupted in the press that led to the fact that at the end of October Bartomeu resigned as president of Barcelona.
Of course, the conflict with the players, in particular with Messi, also played an important role.
According to the media, the Argentine was in a very difficult relationship with the functionary and was ready to leave the club last summer.
The detention of Bartomeu expectedly caused a resonance among the fans of the Catalan club.
The candidates for the post of the president of Barcelona, whose name will become known from the results of the March elections, did not stand aside either.
So, Joan Laporta believes that such events deal a serious blow to the reputation of the club.
“In light of today's events, the searches carried out in the Barcelona offices, the detention of the ex-president and the club's managers, on behalf of the Estimem El Barça team, I express maximum respect for the actions of the police, as well as for the presumption of innocence ... We feel the greatest regret in connection with what is happening, because it causes enormous damage to the image and reputation of the club, ”Diario Sport quoted Laporto as saying.
In turn, Victor Font said that the detention of Bartomeu will negatively affect the reputation of Barcelona, but he also expressed confidence that soon the fans of the club will be able to forget about this scandal.
“A very sad day for Barcelona. Respecting the presumption of innocence, I would like to point out that events like today's are causing serious damage to the institutional image of this club. We have been saying for a long time that the model that is still valid today is no longer suitable. Changes need to be made so that the club is much more transparent, has representative bodies that enjoy true independence from management, as well as effective control mechanisms ... Only through such changes will we be able to prevent the repetition of such situations, ”said Font Marca.