Wife of Spanish President Pedro Sánchez authorised to travel to London whilst awaiting trial over influence-peddling charges
Begoña Gómez, spouse of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, accused of influence-peddling and corruption, has received court permission to leave Spain and attend her daughter's degree conferment ceremony in London between 8 and 10 July.
Wife of Spanish President Pedro Sánchez authorised to travel to London whilst awaiting trial over influence-peddling charges
Begoña Gómez, spouse of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, will be able to travel to the United Kingdom between 8 and 10 July following court authorisation to leave the country for a brief period. The woman is being tried for influence-peddling and had previously been prohibited from leaving Spain, requiring her to hand over her passport and present herself to the authorities twice a month.
The initial request also included travel to Turkey, where Gómez wished to accompany her husband at the NATO summit in Ankara. However, the magistrate rejected this part of the petition, arguing that Turkey is not part of the European Union's justice area, which complicates police and judicial cooperation in case of flight.
On 20 June, a Madrid court determined that Begoña Gómez would be tried by jury for influence-peddling. In April, judge Juan Carlos Peinado charged her with misappropriation of funds, influence-peddling, corruption in commercial dealings and misconduct. The investigation, opened two years ago, examines whether Gómez took advantage of her status as wife of the head of government in her work at Complutense University of Madrid, accusations that both she and her husband deny.
No date has been set for the commencement of the trial. The case is part of a series of judicial investigations that in recent months have affected several associates of Pedro Sánchez, putting pressure on the fragile government coalition.
Source: G4Media.ro, reproduction AFP/Agerpres.
Source: G4Media