{"id":585282,"date":"2021-03-01T12:42:39","date_gmt":"2021-03-01T17:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/?p=585282"},"modified":"2021-03-01T12:42:39","modified_gmt":"2021-03-01T17:42:39","slug":"josep-bartomeu-arrested-as-catalan-police-raid-barcelonas-offices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2021\/03\/01\/josep-bartomeu-arrested-as-catalan-police-raid-barcelonas-offices\/","title":{"rendered":"Josep Bartomeu Arrested as Catalan Police Raid Barcelona\u2019s Offices"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former Barcelona<\/a> president Josep Mar\u00eda Bartomeu has been arrested at his home by Catalan police, according to reports from Cadena Ser<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Barcelona\u2019s CEO \u00d3scar Grau, chief lawyer Roman G\u00f3mez and former Bartomeu advisor Jaume Masferrer have also been arrested.<\/p>\n

The announcement comes after a morning raid<\/a> was carried out at the club\u2019s headquarters by local police in relation to the ongoing \u201cBar\u00e7agate\u201d scandal<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Josep Bartomeu Arrested After Catalan Police Raid Barcelona\u2019s Offices<\/h2>\n

Bartomeu Accused of Corruption By Catalan Authorities<\/h3>\n

The scandal surrounds the club\u2019s relationship with the social media company I3 Ventures, which was allegedly hired to boost the public image<\/a> of Bartomeu and his board of directors, while also discrediting some of his most prominent detractors.<\/p>\n

The New York-based firm supposedly created fake profiles that posted messages of support for Bartomeu, while tarnishing the reputation of some of his loudest critics, including Leo Messi<\/a>, Xavi Hern\u00e1ndez, Gerard Piqu\u00e9, Pep Guardiola and presidential candidate, Joan Laporta<\/a>.<\/p>\n

According to sporting newspaper AS<\/a>, the Bartomeu administration paid \u20ac1 million to I3 Ventures for their work, splitting the bill into five separate payments of \u20ac200,000 to avoid detection from financial watchdogs.<\/p>\n

Local authorities accuse Bartomeu<\/a> of paying I3 Ventures 600 per cent of the market rate for their work, circumventing internal club policy to pay the agency and “simulating” the dismissal of Masferrer while working out a beneficial financial arrangement.<\/p>\n

However, an external audit<\/a> conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers at the behest of the club back in July found that Barcelona had not broken any anti-corruption laws in its dealing with the social media firm.<\/p>\n

As Elections Loom, Bartomeu Doubles Down on Corruption Denial<\/h3>\n

Last month at the XIV V\u00e1zquez Montalb\u00e1n International Journalism Awards, Bartomeu, who ran Barcelona from 2014 until his resignation in October<\/a> 2020, admitted to hiring the social media firm back in 2017. However, the 58-year-old vehemently denied any wrongdoing.<\/p>\n

“I want things to be clear to our members. There must be no doubt in the minds of anybody that Bar\u00e7a has never hired any company to damage the reputation of any player, former player, politician, president or ex-president,\u201d Bartomeu said<\/a>. \u201cIt’s false. We will defend ourselves as necessary against the people who are accusing us. It’s false. Barcelona has never hired anyone to damage the reputation of anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

The raid is the third one undertaken by local authorities on the 26-time La Liga champions\u2019 headquarters, with police entering the club\u2019s offices in June and September to seize documents.<\/p>\n

In the aftermath of their September raid, the police said there were \u201cclear signs of corruption<\/a>\u201d at the club in relation to its dealings with I3 Ventures.<\/p>\n

With presidential elections taking place on Sunday, Bartomeu\u2019s full-time successor will have the additional headache of the unfolding scandal to deal with on top of the Catalan club\u2019s financial woes and ongoing struggles<\/a> on the pitch.<\/p>\n

Laporta is reportedly the favourite to win the election<\/a>. The former president from 2003 to 2010 was polling at above 50 per cent as late as last month, according to Mundo Deportivo<\/a>. He is running against Victor Font and Toni Freixa.<\/p>\n

Main Photo<\/p>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>