Messi receives threatening note after family store attacked in Argentina

A supermarket owned by the PSG star’s family-in-law was attacked in his hometown of Rosario.

Gunmen attacked a supermarket, called ‘Unico’, owned by the family of Lionel Messi’s wife, Antonela Roccuzzo, in Rosario, Argentina, on Thursday morning.

According to the Argentine outlet, Cadena 3, two unnamed individuals appeared at the store on a motorcycle after two in the morning. One got off the bike, then fired 14 shots at the shutters and front door. There were no reported casualties.

14 bullets fired at Messi family store, threatening message left for football star.

"Messi, we're waiting for you. Javkin is a narco, he won't take care of you," said a handwritten message. Pablo Javkin is mayor of Messi's hometown, Rosario, Argentinahttps://t.co/9phpAFCEgj pic.twitter.com/4f6O4Hnv14

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) March 3, 2023

The message for Messi

Police in Rosario added the pair left a message on cardboard that said: “Messi, we are waiting for you. Javkin is a drug dealer. He is not going to look after you.”

The man mentioned in the note is Pablo Javkin, the mayor of Rosario.

Javkin has already spoken to reporters since the attack. The mayor lamented the increased level of crime in Rosario. He also said the city needs more police and protection.

“Rosario is 300 km [from Argentina’s capital city Buenos Aires]; it is near,” Javkin wrote on Twitter.

“We want to get all the resources against crime that Argentina has to take care of us, to protect this city that gives the country glory and science, countryside and art, federalism, and union.”

At the time of writing, Messi and his wife have not commented on the attack in Rosario.

The 35-year-old Paris Saint-Germain forward is in France preparing for Saturday’s home game against Nantes in Ligue 1. For match details and stats, visit the Ace Football preview here.

“Lionel-Messi-Argentina-2022-FIFA-World-Cup (cropped)” by Hossein Zohrevand is licensed under CC BY 4.0. The image was modified.