An Iranian man whose uncanny resemblance to soccer legend Lionel Messi prompted the nickname "Iranian Messi" took to social media on Wednesday to deny allegations that he impersonated the Argentinian athlete to sleep with 23 women.
The 26-year-old Reza Parastesh called the allegations against him "fake news," and said he isn't being sued by nearly two dozen women for mimicking the athlete for his sexual exploits.
“Hi friends, a piece of false news about me is trending on social media with regards to me sleeping with 23 women because they thought I was Lionel Messi. Please do not play with people's reputation and credibility,” he said. “We are all aware of the fact that if it actually happened to anyone, there would be some complaints and it would lead to my prosecution. That would be a disaster and a calamity of international proportion. If this news was true, I would be in jail right now."
According to the Spanish publication Marca, Parastesh told various women that he was Lionel Messi before sleeping with them, which can be classified as "rape by deception" in various countries.
The allegations reportedly surfaced on Twitter earlier this week, and Parastesh was "harrassed" as a result. “The news is spreading in the Muslim countries and it has been a disaster,” he added. “I was severely harassed because it released the whole world on me. My family also harassed me, but the people's attack was more influential.”
Parastesh's "Iranian Messi" moniker reportedly began years ago when his father told him to pose in the Argentinian's red and blue Barça jersey. The photo went viral shortly thereafter given his resemblance to the soccer star.
