A Spanish court announced on Wednesday that it had opened a preliminary investigation targeting the wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez for “influence peddling” and “corruption”, after a complaint filed by an anti-corruption collective considered close to the far right . This investigation, “against Begoña Gómez” for acts “alleged of influence peddling and corruption”, was opened on April 16 after a complaint from the association “Manos limpias” (Clean Hands), indicated the Superior Court of Justice of Madrid in a short press release. It is placed under the seal of “education secrecy”, he added.
475 million euros to Air Europa
According to the online media El Confidencial, which revealed the information, this preliminary investigation concerns Begoña Gómez’s links with private companies that received public aid during the Covid-19 crisis or signed contracts with the State, while her husband was head of government. Investigators are specifically interested in its links with the Spanish tourism group Globalia, owner of the airline Air Europa, at a time when the latter was in talks with the government to obtain aid in the face of the heavy drop in air traffic caused by the health crisis.
At the time, Begoña Gomez headed IE Africa Center, a foundation linked to the Madrid business school IE University, a position she left in 2022. According to El Confidencial, IE Africa Center had “signed a sponsorship agreement with Globalia in 2020” and Begoña Gomez allegedly participated in “a private meeting with its CEO Javier Hidalgo at the time when Globalia was negotiating its multi-million euro bailout plan with the government”.
This plan enabled the granting of 475 million euros to Air Europa in November 2020. Questioned on Wednesday in Parliament about this matter, Pedro Sánchez assured that he had confidence in justice. “A day like today, after the news I heard, despite everything, I still believe in the justice of my country,” assured the socialist leader. Since the first revelations in the press on this affair, the Spanish right has increased attacks against the Prime Minister. The announcement of the opening of this investigation “is important enough for the head of government to give explanations to the Spaniards”, Ester Muñoz, a member of the leadership of the Popular Party (PP, right), told the press on Wednesday.
Manos limpias, a collective founded in 1995, has been at the origin of several legal proceedings in recent years and has become a civil party in numerous trials for corruption cases. It is considered close to the far right, notably due to the personality of its secretary general Miguel Bernad, former leader of the Frente Nacional party, dissolved in 1993.