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Gunmen threaten Lionel Messi and shoot up family-owned supermarket.
In his hometown of Rosario, Argentina, Lionel Messi has been threatened by gunmen who opened fire at a family-run supermarket.
Messi was not present during the incident but the gunmen left a message which read: ‘Messi, we’re waiting for you.
‘[Rosario mayor Pablo] Javkin is also a drug trafficker, so he won’t take care of you.’
Two individuals on a motorbike opened fire on the supermarket, which is owned by Messi’s wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, but no one was hurt.
Messi, who led Argentina to World Cup triumph in Qatar in December, frequently visits Rosario and has a property in the Funes district.
There has been a reported increase in drug-related violence in Rosario, which is around 190 miles northwest of the capital city of Buenos Aires, and local police are investigating.
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Celia Arena, the justice minister for the Santa Fe province, where Rosario is situated, turned to social media to react to the attack.
She posted: ‘With the mafia attack on the Roccuzzo family’s business, knowing that it will be an event of global significance, the aim is to [install] terror in the population and unease in those of us who are in the battle against criminal violence. It is, neither more nor less, the definition of terrorism.’
Con el ataque mafioso al comercio de la familia Roccuzzo se busca, a sabiendas de que será un hecho de trascendencia mundial, infundir terror en la población y desazón en quienes estamos en la batalla contra la violencia criminal. Es, ni más ni menos, la definición de terrorismo.
— Celia Arena (@celiaarena) March 2, 2023
Messi, who plays his club football for Paris Saint-Germain in France, is yet to comment on the incident.
Rosario mayor Pablo Javkin – who was also sent a message by the gunmen – offered his thoughts in an interview on local radio and appeared to slam federal security officials.
‘I doubt everyone, even those who are supposed to protect us,’ he said.
‘Where are the ones who need to take care of us? It’s clear that those who have the weapons and have the possibility of investigating the criminals aren’t doing it, and it’s very easy for any gang to carry out something like this.’