Messi's brother avoids jail over gun charges
Matias Messi, 35, was handed a 2 ½-year prison sentence, but was given community service instead of being incarcerated.
He crashed a boat in the Parana River back in December, hitting the sandbank and, according to the family, suffered “fractures in his jaw and his palate, as well as multiple cuts on his face.”
Local prosecutors still ordered his arrest because a gun was found in a blood-stained rag aboard the boat, which had crashed into a sandbank.
Lionel himself has had a number of run-ins with authorities, though his issues are tax-related, and a feature he shares with rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
It's been a difficult time for him anyway, his Argentina side crashing out of the World Cup at the Round of 16 stage.