Authorities in Brazil may detain Brazilian football player Ronaldinho Gacho to testify in connection with a crypto fraud investigation.

According to local media sources, Ronaldinho refused to appear before the country's Congress in connection with a pyramid scheme investigation purportedly involving one of his enterprises.

On August 24, the former Paris Saint-Germain, FC Barcelona, and AC Milan star refused to testify before a congressional session for the second time, blaming bad weather.

Congressman Aureo Ribeiro stated that he will have another opportunity to testify on August 31. If Ronaldinho fails to appear, law enforcement officers may summon him before the committee.

Witnesses who have been summoned to come before Congress have a legal obligation to do so, according to Brazilian law. Witnesses who refuse to comply with a subpoena may be punished and hauled before Congress forcibly by the police.

The investigation centers on Ronaldinho's business "18kRonaldinho." The firm allegedly promised consumers daily returns of more than 2% on cryptocurrency investments.

A lawsuit was filed against the corporation claiming more than $61 million in damages for failing to repay such profits. The lawsuit is now part of a larger investigation into cryptocurrency fraud in the country.

Ronaldinho's legal team claims he was simply the company's "ambassador" and thus another victim of the alleged scam. According to them, his image and name were used without authority to defraud potential clients.

Ronaldinho's crypto business also includes a nonfungible token (NFT) collection, which was introduced in 2021 in conjunction with INFLUXO.

Sources:

https://cointelegraph.com/news/ronaldinho-fails-testify-crypto-scam-probe-faces-possible-arrest-brazil  

https://cryptopotato.com/soccer-legend-ronaldinho-investigated-over-participating-in-a-crypto-scam-report/  

https://beincrypto.com/ronaldinho-court-hearing-alleged-crypto-scam/   

https://g1.globo.com/politica/noticia/2023/08/24/ronaldinho-gaucho-cita-mau-tempo-no-rs-e-falta-novamente-a-cpi-das-piramides-financeiras-irmao-assis-sera-ouvido-nesta-quinta.ghtml