Press reports revealed that FC Barcelona was subjected to a fraud in the deal to include Polish Robert Lewandowski from Bayern Munich in the summer of 2022.
Barcelona signed Lewandowski for 45 million euros, in addition to 5 million euros in additional incentives.
According to Radio Ser Cadena, a fraudster impersonated the Polish striker's agent, Pini Zahavi, during the Lewandowski transfer process and requested a commission of one million euros from Barcelona, which transferred one million euros to the fraudster's bank account in Cyprus.
Barcelona announced that a fraudster impersonating Pini Zahavi, the manager of Robert Lewandowski, whom it transferred in 2022, had a signing fee of 1 million euros sent to his account through the club. The club noticed this fraudulent attempt and stated that the payment was refunded.… pic.twitter.com/jn30NdBdU4
— Play Spor (@playspor) October 17, 2024
Details of the incident
The report explained that the events occurred in the summer of 2022, specifically at the end of July, when several managers and senior executives at the club were contacted via email from an address bearing the name Pini Zahavi, and they were asked in a letter to deposit part of the commission in the Bank of Cyprus. And on another account other than Zahavi’s account.
The sender demanded one million euros and attached an account number in the name of a person named Michael Gerardos Hermanos Damon, who is described as a lawyer.
Cypriot sources confirm that the bank's compliance department blocked the transfer because it was considered “high risk” as no movement had previously occurred in that account, and it was not possible to prove a valid document justifying the payment.
The newspaper reported that a person claiming to be Pini Zahavi called the bank repeatedly, demanding to transfer money, but nothing happened.
The person who assumed Zahavi's identity was sending emails threatening to file a complaint with Barcelona with UEFA and prevent the Pole's registration if the million euros were not paid.
In the end, the bank did not yield to the pressure and the account was closed in October 2022, while Barcelona confirmed that the money was recovered after direct intervention by Pini Zahavi, who confirmed that he had no relationship with the fraudulent person.