cross-posted from: https://scribe.disroot.org/post/9682831

Spain's Supreme Court has sentenced former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos, once a senior figure in Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's Socialist Party (PSOE), to 24 years in prison for his role in a corruption scheme linked to the award of face mask contracts during the COVID-19 pandemic. The court also sentenced his former aide Koldo García to 19 years in prison and businessman Víctor de Aldama to four and a half years.

...

The court found that Ábalos received a series of benefits in exchange for promoting business interests. These included a monthly payment of €10,000 for what were described as his "fixed expenses", the payment of housing costs for a person in his inner circle and the hiring of two women linked to the former minister at public companies overseen by the Transport Ministry.

...

The Supreme Court's decision is particularly significant because it is the first major final conviction involving a former senior member of Sánchez's administration.

...

Archived