A Finnish district court convicted Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen of aggravated tax fraud and sentenced the 29-year-old to four months of suspended imprisonment on Tuesday with a two-year probation period, several Finnish outlets have reported.
The reports cite a ruling which says the now NAVI in-game leader failed to declare €53,000 in earnings from Valve Corporation in 2019, which stemmed from his participation in the IEM Katowice and StarLadder Berlin Majors, and paid approximately €28,000 less in income tax as a result.
In his defense, Aleksib admitted that the filing came up short but denied that he had intentionally attempted to avoid taxes, saying that he had originally believed them to be paid. He has reportedly paid the undeclared taxes since.
The court however found that the failure to declare the income was intentional and that the Finn sought financial gain. According to is.fi, he can appeal the decision until November 26.
While the suspended sentence does not require Aleksib to serve prison time, the conviction could still have implications for his career.
The verdict will be entered into his criminal record, potentially complicating visa applications and travel to international tournaments. It remains unclear whether the conviction will affect his ability to compete abroad or have any consequences for his position in Natus Vincere.
HLTV has reached out to Aleksib for comment without success.
Aleksi 'Aleksib' VirolainenPast 3 months
Natus Vincere
Aleksi 'Aleksib' Virolainen
Mihai 'iM' Ivan
Valeriy 'b1t' Vakhovskiy
Ihor 'w0nderful' Zhdanov
Drin 'makazze' Shaqiri
Andrey 'B1ad3' Gorodenskiy