Gunmen have targeted an Argentian supermarket owned by Lionel Messi’s in-laws, and left a threatening message for the captain of the Qatar World Cup winners on the shop door.
“Messi, we are waiting for you, (Pablo) Javkin (the mayor) is also a narco, he is not going to take care of you,” the hand written note on cardboard read, in a direct threat to Argentina’s captain and seven-times World Player of the Year.
Two people on motorbikes were seen shooting at Unico supermarket belonging to the family of Antonela Roccuzzo, Messi’s wife, in Rosario, which is also Messi’s hometown, on Thursday morning.
Pablo Javkin, the city’s mayor, blamed security forces for failing to combat organised crime, which in recent years has grown in Argentina’s third largest city, where dozens of ships daily load thousands of tons of grain.
“I spoke (with the Roccuzzos) and they are worried,” Mr Javkin told reporters outside the supermarket that was attacked.
Television images showed bullet casings on the sidewalk where the business is located. The front of the building was hit by 14 bullets and the shop remained closed on Thursday morning. No one was injured.
Santa Fe’s Security Minister Claudio Brilloni told reporters that authorities did not know the reasons for the attack.
Celia Arena, Santa Fe’s Justice Minister, said the attack amounted to “terrorism” by a “mafia” group meant to intimidate the broader population.
“The aim is to deliberately cause terror in the population and discourage those of us who are fighting against criminal violence, knowing that it will be an event of global significance,” Ms Arena wrote in a social media post.
Mr Javkin, a centre-left politician in opposition to the ruling Peronist coalition, appeared to throw suspicion of complicity for the attack on both criminal gangs and federal security officials.
“I doubt everyone, even those who are supposed to protect us,” he said in a local radio interview.
He said that he had recently had “very strong discussions” with members of the federal security forces over the past couple of weeks demanding that they crack down on the city’s crime.
“Where are the ones who need to take care of us?” Mr Javkin said.
“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.”
The federal government’s Security Minister Aníbal Fernández said drug-related violence was not a recent phenomenon in the city, and that Thursday’s attack was typical of what has happened there “for the last 20 years.”
Prosecutor Federico Rébola said the Roccuzzo family had not received any previous threats, a Rosario media outlet reported.
On the official Twitter account “Team Messi” and Antonela Roccuzzo’s Instagram profile there were no mentions of the incidents.
Messi has not commented. Considered by many to the greatest football player of all time, Messi is revered in Argentina, especially after he led the national team to the country’s first World Cup victory in 36 years in Qatar in December.
The murder rate in Rosario is among the highest in Argentina, as gangs linked to drug trafficking coexist, according to judicial complaints, and clashes causing injuries and deaths are frequently reported.
Messi currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain and spends much of his time overseas, though he often visits Rosario where he has a home in the suburb of Funes.
The French team posted a photo on social media of Messi training on Thursday morning.
The attack came weeks before Argentina play two friendly matches in the South American country.
Neither game will take place in Rosario. Argentina face Panama on March 23 in the capital Buenos Aires and on March 28 they play in the province of Santiago del Estero against Curacao.
The matches will be the team’s first in Argentina since the World Cup. Coach Lionel Scaloni has not yet named his squad.
