Messi’s brother could be jailed if convicted of illegal possession of firearm

Matias Messi, the older brother of Lionel was arrested for possession of a firearm after a loaded pistol was found in a boat he was in following the mystery incident.

The 35-year-old has now been warned that he could be jailed for eight and a half years if convicted of illegal possession of a firearm.

He was arrested in hospital on Friday, December 1 after police said they had discovered a gun in a boat Matias is claiming he abandoned following an accident the day before. 

Doctors treated him for injuries which included a broken jaw and facial cuts but a judge decided the 35-year-old should be remanded in prison once he is well enough to leave the hospital, although there is a possibility he may be allowed to continue his recovery at home.

The minimum prison sentence Matias could face for an illegal firearms conviction is three and a half years although his lawyer Ignacio Carbone suggests the gun found on the boat could have been planted by cops.

He remained under police guard over the weekend at the Sanatorio Parque - a private hospital in their native city of Rosario in Argentina.

Matias was arrested 24 hours after being helped ashore after being found drifting in a motorboat on the Parana River near Rosario just before dawn on Thursday morning.

Last year Matias was instructed to teach football as part of a probation order after being caught with a gun in his car while back in October 2015, he was accused of illegal possession of a weapon after police discovered an unlicensed .22 pistol in his Audi A5.

In October 2008 he was arrested for allegedly having a loaded gun in his belt while he survived an assassination attempt in April 2011.

Matias is one of Leo’s two brothers. Rodrigo is also older than the Barcelona star and they have a younger sister called Marisol.