Bartomeu maintained that the 1.7 million euro payment to lawyer José Ángel González Franco was justified by the 17 million euro reduction in fines achieved during the Neymar case. He stated that the commission was verbally agreed upon and later ratified by the board of directors.
Regarding the 1.5 million euros paid to Club Esportiu Laietà, the former president argued it was compensation for noise and dust caused by the Espai Barça construction works. Prosecutors, however, suspect this was an unjustified favor to prevent the sports club from filing legal objections against the project.
“"The commission paid to a lawyer was justified because he negotiated the settlement in the Neymar case."
The investigation, triggered by Joan Laporta's board in January 2022, also examines the signing of Brazilian forward Malcom. Former vice-president Jordi Mestre has claimed his signature was fraudulently scanned onto documents related to that transfer without his consent.
