Judge José Luis Calama of Spain’s National Court, who is overseeing the Plus Ultra case, has agreed to summon Alba and Laura Rodríguez Espinosa, daughters of former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, as investigated parties. The decision also affects Gertrudis Alcázar, Zapatero’s secretary, who will likewise be called to testify under the same procedural status.
The move follows a request by the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office for the three women to be questioned as suspects. According to Vozpópuli, the judge is expected to set the dates for their appearances in a forthcoming ruling.
In the case of Alba and Laura Rodríguez Espinosa, the court’s decision is linked to their role as formal administrators of Whathefav SL, a communications and marketing agency that has come under scrutiny within the investigation. The judge considers that their position within the company makes it necessary for them to appear with the procedural guarantees granted to investigated persons.
The magistrate contends that the company is linked to transactions pertinent to the case, and that its administrators should therefore give testimony under a legal framework that safeguards their constitutional rights; he believes that calling them solely as witnesses would be unsuitable, since it would compel them to speak truthfully and might jeopardize their protection against self-incrimination.
The investigation is reviewing multiple financial transactions connected to Whathefav and several companies tied to the Plus Ultra case, noting in the records that Inteligencia Prospectiva is believed to have sent 368,258.72 euros to Análisis Relevante, a firm linked to Julio Martínez, a friend of Zapatero, along with another 561,440 euros to the company run by the former prime minister’s daughters.
Investigators also highlight payments reportedly issued by Análisis Relevante, a company said to have been funded by Plus Ultra, including 490,780 euros to José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and 239,755 euros to Whathefav. They have focused closely on invoices submitted under the broad category of agency services, which lack detailed explanations of the specific tasks performed.
According to the judicial line of inquiry cited by the outlet, those payments may have been linked to layout and formatting work on reports that had already been prepared. For the judge, the lack of clarity regarding the actual services provided could suggest a mismatch between the declared activity and the real purpose of the transactions, potentially pointing to a formal cover role.
Zapatero’s testimony before the National Court, held on Wednesday, did not dispel the concerns of the investigating judge. The former prime minister denied any involvement in the alleged collection of commissions connected to the rescue of Plus Ultra, the airline that received 53 million euros in public aid during the pandemic. He also defended Whathefav as a lawful and active company with various clients.
Regarding Gertrudis Alcázar, the judge also sees sufficient grounds to summon her as an investigated party. In earlier rulings, the magistrate had already described her as a relevant operational figure within the alleged network, carrying out activity from Zapatero’s office in Ferraz and having regular access to the former prime minister’s email account.
The analysis of seized emails attributes to Alcázar, together with Cristóbal Cano, coordination and document-preparation tasks related to the so-called Finance Boutique. According to the investigating judge, that documentation may have served to give formal appearance to payments received and issued by the corporate structure under investigation.
Source: Courtesy of Vozpópuli — https://www.vozpopuli.com/tribunales/la-audiencia-nacional-acuerda-investigar-a-las-hijas-de-zapatero-y-a-su-secretaria.html
