Lionel Messi, considered the best soccer player in the world, was left an alarming message by gunmen after they shot at a business owned by his wife Antonela Rocuzzo’s family early Thursday morning. Police reported the event in Rosario, Argentina, after they responded to a call for help from the 911 emergency number. It is not reported if there are any injuries from the shooting.
Police sources told local media Cadena 3 that the attack was carried out by two armed men on board a motorcycle who shot directly at the facade of a self-service store owned by the PSG player’s in-laws at Lavalle 2554 between 27 de Febrero and Ocampo streets.
After the shooting registered around 3:20 a.m. (local time) this Thursday, the gunmen left written on a piece of paper a disturbing message addressed to Messi, where he is linked to drug trafficking:
“Messi we are waiting for you. Javkin is a narco, he’s not going to take care of you.”
The alleged criminals named the mayor of Rosario, Pablo Javkin, in the message to Messi, pointing to him as a member of organized crime dedicated to drug trafficking. According to the police description, who had access to a video surveillance camera at the scene, they observed two men arrive on a motorcycle at Roccuzzo’s family’s establishment.
One of the gunmen got off the motorcycle, which never left the ignition, and began firing directly at Antonela’s family’s business. The police arrived at the scene of the armed attack. It was reported that several 9 mm caliber bullet casings were found near the Roccuzzo’s supermarket.
The Rocuzzo’s supermarket “Único”
In this regard, the deputy chief of the Regional Unit II of the Police of Rosario, Iván González, confirmed that in the place of the attack, they left a note dedicated to the captain of the Argentine national soccer team, who recently won the award as the best player in the world in The Best awards.
“We were alerted by a 911 call. We saw impacts in front of the Único supermarket. They left a sign where it talks about the soccer player Messi and the mayor.”
The supermarket “Único” is the business name of Antonela Roccuzzo’s family, founded in Rosario. The project started in 1982 and was created by Messi’s wife’s paternal grandmother, Lelé. However, the store would reopen in 1990, but it would not be until seven years later that the supermarket would be successful, according to local media TN.
Antonela’s father is in charge of the family business, and together with another relative, they are responsible for managing the establishment that was shot today.
Pablo Javkin spoke about the armed attack
Referring to the attack, the mayor of Rosario criticized the lack of protection suffered by the city located some 300 kilometers north of Buenos Aires on the part of the national authorities.
“Where are those who are supposed to take care of us? Here it is clear that those with weapons and the possibility of doing criminal intelligence do not do it, and it is very easy for any gang to generate this event,” the official told journalists, reported AP.
According to the mayor, who is a member of a party opposed to the ruling Peronism in Argentina, the hypothesis about the authorship of the act “are the gangs and those who have to take care of us, the forces that have weapons” about the police of the province of Santa Fe – where Rosario is located -, the Federal Police and the Gendarmerie.
The area where the commercial premises are located is the scene of constant crime and is completely unprotected by federal forces, according to Javkin. This week, the governor of Santa Fe Omar Perotti, and Javkin participated in a new meeting of the Joint Command Table of the provincial Ministry of Security to discuss actions to reduce the rates of violence and insecurity in the city.