Supreme Court imposes 24-year prison sentence on former minister Ábalos for corruption in face mask contracts
The Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court confirms the guilt of the former Transport Ministry chief for leading a network that extracted illegal commissions from the purchase of medical supplies during the pandemic.
Supreme Court imposes 24-year prison sentence on former minister Ábalos for corruption in face mask contracts
The Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court has handed down a 24-year prison sentence against José Luis Ábalos, former head of the Ministry of Transport, for his involvement in a scheme that profited from the purchase of protective equipment during the health emergency. The ruling finds him responsible for integrating a criminal organisation, bribery, embezzlement of public funds and influence peddling.
Everything began in late February 2024, when officers from the UCO arrested Koldo García Izaguirre, who had been Ábalos's right-hand man at the ministerial department. That same day, the then Socialist MP denied before Congress having knowledge of the scheme. The following months would contradict that claim.
By October 2024, anti-corruption prosecutors already argued that the former PSOE leader played a central role in the conspiracy, and that the actions of García and intermediary Víctor de Aldama made no sense without the acquiescence of whoever held the Transport portfolio.
An accounting review ordered by Óscar Puente—who took over the portfolio after Ábalos's departure—proved crucial. Auditors discovered that the convicted man had authorised an order to purchase four million face masks from Soluciones de Gestión, but revoked it in less than forty minutes to increase the purchase to eight million. The experts understood that such a doubling, executed in so short a timeframe, was motivated more by commercial interests than by actual demands of the ministry.
The network extended beyond the department that Ábalos directed. The Ministry of the Interior, the Balearic executive—then headed by Francina Armengol—and the Canary Islands administration—under the mandate of Ángel Víctor Torres—also contracted with the same company. WhatsApp conversations and technical certificates presented during the hearing showed how the intermediaries used García's proximity to pressure for rapid payments and facilitate access to other institutions.
The court also found it established that Ábalos interceded so that Jésica Rodríguez, his then romantic partner, would obtain employment at Tragsatec and Ineco, where she received salaries for two and a half years. The selection file contained observations such as that the candidate "may need help to avoid making mistakes in very demanding work".
The investigation has been split into multiple strands. The Supreme Court's verdict covers only the first, linked to the face mask contracts. Other branches, relating to alleged manipulations in public works and cash payments to the Socialist party, remain open.
Source: El Mundo
Source: El Mundo