Lionel Messi's brother arrested in Rosario for illegal gun possession

Matias Messi (L) along with his brother Lionel Messi (R)

FC Barcelona star Lionel Messi’s brother, Matias Messi has been charged with possession of an unlicensed gun by the authorities in Argentina, as per the reports on Marca. Matias was held after an alleged violent spat with the police officers in Rosario.

The event took place in the south of the city of Rosario, where the 33-year-old was reported to be wrestling with officers after refusing to show them documents for his Audi A5 and letting them search the vehicle during a routine stop.

The brother of the Barcelona forward was claimed by Argentinian TV news channel to have an unlicensed .22-calibre gun. According to the local reports, Matias tried to trick the officer by throwing the keys to his car, into a friend’s home near the search point.

This was followed by a brief scuffle between them and Matias has suffered a cut to his eyebrow while the two officers were taken to the hospital with foot and knee injuries. Luckily, the 33-year-old was released from the police custody after fours hours. However, a judge has opened an official probe into the footballer's brother for alleged illegal weapon possession and it remains to be seen what further punishment Matias will be facing in the coming future.

Not Matias Messi’s first offence

It is not the first time Messi’s older brother has had a bust-up with the police officers. Matias was involved in a similar incident in October 2008 when he was arrested in Rosario for being spotted carrying a gun in a holster.

Back in April 2011, he survived an attempted assassination. The 32-year-old dived for cover as a gunman on a motorbike sprayed bullets at his house. Police found four 9mm handgun rounds lodged in the building.

More trouble for Messi family

Messi and his family have been under the spotlight recently and not for the right reasons. Members of the Messi family are facing the allegation of tax evasion in Spain. The Barcelona star and his father Jorge Messi have both been accused of defrauding the authorities for more than €4m (£3m; $4.5m) related to income from the use of his image. However, both have claimed to be innocent and have denied wrongdoing.

This comes at a time when the Argentine has all too much time to think about his family’s misfortunes as he recovers from a likely two-month spell out due to injury.