Last November, several media outlets ran headlines with attention-grabbing titles. "Andrés Iniesta under investigation for fraud in Peru," summarized newspapers and television stations. However, a month later, La Otra Crónica gained access to the file of a case that was not properly presented. Not only because Iniesta had nothing to do with it, but also because his name was used to sensationalize a lawsuit that would have otherwise been insignificant.
It all started when some businessmen in Peru accused the Latin American subsidiary of Never Say Never, better known as NSN, a company in which Iniesta is only a shareholder. They accused them of an alleged fraud amounting to 500,000 euros for not carrying out a series of sports and music events that they claimed to have agreed upon as organizers. There were not enough grounds to support the idea that the former footballer, who is only a shareholder of the parent company, had any involvement with a company that NSN itselfdissolved two years ago and with which they have no connection.
"It was led by individuals who were not the right ones and harmed the company and third parties," the company stated in the press release issued after the complaint was leaked, which was actually aimed at these alleged culprits.
The report from the Peruvian Prosecutor's Office, to which this supplement has had access, confirms that, indeed, the athlete had nothing to do with this situation and was not aware of it prior to the complaint. In its legal analysis, the prosecutor's office recalls the "revealing suspicion" standard set by the Peruvian Supreme Court to initiate a formal investigation and concludes that, in Iniesta's case, this threshold is not met.
The investigative actions have not allowed for the identification of his involvement or linking him to the reported economic damage, so it is appropriate to close the case. "The investigation has not reached the 'revealing suspicion' required for the intended formalization and continuation of the fiscal investigation, which is why closing the investigation was appropriate," the report states.
The judicial decision is even clearer: "The First Corporate Criminal Prosecutor's Office of San Isidro-Lince resolves that "it is not appropriate to formalize or continue the preparatory investigation against Andrés Iniesta Luján for the alleged crime of aggravated fraud against the company Gucho Entertainment SAC." With this, the former Barcelona player is cleared of criminal charges in this case.
The ruling also states that the Spaniard has never even visited the country. "There is no record of migratory movement" entering Peru, it indicates. Additionally, a document from the Spanish Ministry of the Interior, dated November 20, 2025, adds that "the footballer has no complaints related to the companies International Commercialization of Sports Spain SL and NSN Barcelona."
This is probably the only ruling that the four-time Champions League winner with Barcelona and scorer of the goal that gave Spain victory in the 2010 World Cup would appreciate. The player has been affected both by the leak and by the nature of Peruvian justice, which allows anyone to be accused without providing initial evidence and requires legal mechanisms to keep cases open for 60 days.
"The elements of conviction must be rational, therefore ruling out vague indications or light suspicions, so the aforementioned provision must be based on factual data that, representing more than a possibility and less than certainty, imply a probability of the existence of a crime," they detail.
This official document with the letterhead of the Public Ministry of the Republic of Peru confirms Iniesta's innocence in less time than estimated, as the investigation against him has been closed in just one month. When the usual practice in the South American country is for cases to take much longer to resolve.