Jose de la Mata, the Spanish court judge overseeing the Neymar transfer case, has again requested that Brazilian courts take statements from two former Santos directors regarding the latest charges related to the controversial transfer, judicial sources have told the Efe news agency.
In May, a Spanish court alleged that Barcelona club president Josep Bartomeu and his predecessor Sandro Rosell evaded millions in taxes after signing Neymar, who moved from the Brazilian side to Barcelona in 2013, and whose transfer is still under investigation by both Spanish and Brazilian tax authorities.
A Brazilian court last month froze the assets of the Barcelona star, as well as those of his family and related businesses valued at 188.8 million Brazilian reals (€42 million).
The Spanish judge is waiting for testimony from the Brazilian club's former leaders to determine requests for case statements from Bartomeu and Rosell, the report said.
The judge, according to Efe sources, has used two appeals committees in Brazil to request testimony from the former Santos directors Luis Alvaro de Oliveira and Odilio Rodriguez, but has not received a response. The report said the judge is awaiting testimony from the Brazilian side's leaders so that he can determine when to call in Bartomeu, Rosell, Neymar and Neymar's father for statements.
The report also said that the judge is seeking to use statements made by the Santos directors as part of his investigation, but is also willing to send a judicial committee to Brazil to hear testimony.
The judge is also seeking documentation from Real Madrid, Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Manchester City regarding offers they made to Santos for Neymar between 2009-13.
The report said that Real Madrid have complied but neither Chelsea nor Manchester City have responded. Bayern Munich's director Karl-Heinz Rummenigge gave declarations to the Spanish judge in July. According to the source, Rummenigge testified that Bayern's interest was never documented.
The prosecution is seeking a prison sentence of two years and three months for Bartomeu and a sentence of seven years and six months for Rosell, as well as fines of €3.8 million and €25.1m respectively, plus a fee of €11.4m for the club and a €22.2m fine.
The 23-year-old is alleged to have evaded 63 million reals in Brazil taxes (almost $16m or €14m) between 2011 and 2013.