Ten corruption scandals threaten Pedro Sánchez's government in Spain

Pedro Sánchez´s government is currently facing an unprecedented political crisis as a series of corruption scandals come to light. These scandals, now being addressed by various courts and tribunals, have largely been uncovered through persistent journalistic investigations. At the center of these allegations is the Ministry of Transport, which between 2020 and 2021 was led by José Luis Ábalos, Sánchez’s long-time political ally and a key figure in both the government and the Socialist Party.

Despite early reports of corruption emerging in 2020, Sánchez chose to keep Ábalos in his position until the summer of 2021. Even after Ábalos’s eventual removal from the cabinet, he retained significant influence, remaining in the Congress of Deputies and chairing the powerful Interior Commission. The repercussions of these scandals, however, extend far beyond Ábalos and now cast a shadow over some of the most senior figures in Sánchez’s administration, including his wife, Begoña Gómez, as well as high-profile figures like Salvador Illa, Minister of the Interior Fernando Grande-Marlaska, and former Minister of Economy Nadia Calviño.

One of the most significant cases involves a series of illegal transactions and dealings, which cumulatively involve at least €1.64 billion. From controversial bailouts of private companies, misuse of pandemic-related funds, and murky international dealings, these scandals reveal a deeply entrenched network of corruption within the government. Below are some of the key cases that encapsulate the scale of the alleged misconduct:

1.- Delcygate

The ‘Delcy case’ revolves around a trip made to Madrid on January 20, 2020, by Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, who was banned from entering the European Union due to her association with the internationally sanctioned Venezuelan government. There have always been many unanswered questions surrounding this case. What we do know is that Minister Ábalos met with Rodríguez, first inside the plane and then outside, and that she was allowed to wander around Barajas Airport until she boarded another flight to Doha. It was also revealed that the Venezuelan embassy in Madrid unloaded about 40 suitcases from the plane, which were taken off the tarmac without passing through security checks.

Thanks to the February 2024 arrests related to the mask case, it was discovered that one of the leaders of that scheme, Víctor de Aldama, was hired by Globalia in 2020 to help recover $200 million that Air Europa, a subsidiary of the tourism group, had trapped in Venezuela due to the Maduro government’s restrictions on repatriating funds. Aldama was also at the airport that day to meet Delcy. Could the contents of the suitcases be linked to Globalia? There is no certainty, but Air Europa’s financial records for that year show a sudden recovery of €175 million (equivalent to $200 million at the time), though the reason for this has not been clarified.

More recently, investigations by the Civil Guard revealed that none of the ten different versions Ábalos offered at the time about ‘Delcygate’ were true. The reality is that Ábalos sent a letter to Delcy Rodríguez on December 10, 2019, inviting her to visit Spain, and Aldama helped organize her agenda in Madrid for her three-day stay. It has also been confirmed that Prime Minister Sánchez was notified of her arrival four days in advance via a WhatsApp message from Ábalos, and Marlaska’s chief of staff, Rafael Pérez Ruiz, was informed the day before.

During her visit, Delcy was scheduled to dine with several Spanish ministers on the 20th, including Ábalos and Health Minister Salvador Illa, who was mentioned in Aldama’s official agenda. Another surprise dinner was planned for the 21st, which sources close to the intermediary suggest may have involved Sánchez and former president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.

What remains unclear is whether the 104 gold bars (worth €63 million) allegedly purchased by Aldama from Delcy, which according to UCO landed in Caracas on January 3, 2020, from Moscow, arrived on that flight. However, as reported several times by THE OBJECTIVE, the Venezuelan government has frequently abused diplomatic pouches to send numerous unscanned suitcases and containers to Spain, so the gold may have arrived after «Delcygate.»

Minister Marlaska tried to distance himself from the case, but it is evident that he actively rewarded all the police commanders who were at Barajas that night and witnessed the events. It was also revealed that Ábalos made efforts to destroy AENA’s recordings from that night, even arguing with the president of the public company, Maurici Lucena.

2.- Globalia Case

On February 27, 2024, a week after the mask case arrests, THE OBJECTIVE exclusively revealed that the so-called ‘Koldo scheme’ had also been working to benefit Globalia and its airline Air Europa, which had been bailed out with public money in 2020. In the following days, both El Confidencial and THE OBJECTIVE established connections between these companies and the president’s wife, Begoña Gómez, during negotiations over the bailout.

Between guarantees, subsidies, aid, and the rescue of several subsidiaries, Globalia received a total of €1.1 billion from the government between 2020 and 2021. The largest sum was for the bailout of Air Europa, a strategic company for Spain suffering due to the pandemic. Initially unquestioned, the bailout was later scrutinized for ten irregularities, from the record time in which it was authorized (70 days) to the secrecy of the reports justifying the decision.

Although the bailout was approved by the entire Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Transport, led by Ábalos, played a key role in its approval by the State Society for Industrial Participations (SEPI). Other ministries, including those headed by Nadia Calviño (Economy), María Jesús Montero (Finance), Reyes Maroto (Industry), and Teresa Ribera (Ecological Transition), also supported the rescue.

In an unprecedented move, the government approved a €475 million bailout for Globalia on November 3, 2020, €75 million more than the company had requested in September. The official reason? The company’s situation had worsened in a few weeks. Five months later, another Globalia subsidiary, Ávoris, was bailed out with €320 million.

It has now been revealed that Aldama, who worked for Globalia, pressured Ábalos to approve the Air Europa bailout. Additionally, it has been confirmed that Begoña Gómez had a close relationship with Globalia’s former CEO, Javier Hidalgo, especially after he created a company called Wakalua to approach the president’s wife. Wakalua ended up sponsoring the IE Africa Center, which Gómez directed until she moved to Complutense University. Records also show that Gómez met with Hidalgo and Aldama at various meetings while the government prepared Air Europa’s rescue.

Regarding other bailouts, two particularly controversial ones have yet to be clarified but are linked to these schemes. The first is the Duro Felguera bailout, which involved €120 million for a company that was not struggling due to the pandemic, as required by law, but had pre-existing issues. Curiously, Ábalos mentioned this company in a message to Sánchez when discussing Delcy Rodríguez’s visit.

The second is the Plus Ultra airline bailout (€53 million), which was neither strategic for Spain nor had many flights, planes, or employees at the time, and its capital was largely owned by Venezuelan nationals.

3.- Complutense Case

The president’s wife invited Complutense University rector Joaquín Goyache to La Moncloa to set up a chair in Competitive Social Transformation. Within 15 days, despite being mid-summer, the university had a webpage and a list of potential professors. This led to her running two master’s programs over the last four years.

There are some irregularities being investigated by Judge Juan Carlos Peinado in this case. For one, Complutense allowed Gómez to lead the chair despite not having a university degree. More importantly, there are questions about whether she committed embezzlement by registering software theoretically donated to the university by the chair’s sponsors, which she later used in a business she set up in November 2023 to offer the software to SMEs.

All of Gómez’s professional activities have had significant public sector involvement. Eleven different ministries have sponsored or supported her initiatives. Public companies like Correos have also purchased spots for students in her master’s programs.

4.- Barrabés Case

This case, also investigated by Judge Peinado, involves favors received by businesses owned by Juan Carlos Barrabés after he partnered with the president’s wife to establish one of the Complutense master’s programs. Gómez signed two recommendation letters in 2020 that helped Barrabés’ company Innova Next win a public contract worth €7.7 million, and she also arranged meetings between Sánchez and Barrabés at La Moncloa to discuss European funds.

Barrabés, a successful businessman who previously did not rely on government contracts, suddenly began receiving government contracts after Gómez signed the letters. His businesses have since secured €18.2 million through 53 contracts with eight different ministries, most notably under Nadia Calviño’s department, which oversaw Red.es, a public entity that awarded Barrabés €9.2 million through two contracts.

At least six of these contracts contain irregularities, including lacking a required equality plan, winning subjective evaluations despite lower objective scores, and ministries bypassing bidding processes to extend contracts.

Gómez is currently under investigation for alleged influence peddling and business corruption in the Complutense and Barrabés cases.

5.- Mask Case

Commonly known as the ‘Koldo case’, this scandal was initially dubbed the ‘Management Solutions case’ when first exposed by journalists on April 14, 2020. It was largely forgotten for two years until Madrid’s Popular Party referred it to the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office in February 2022 in response to criticisms against Isabel Díaz Ayuso’s brother for his pandemic-related business deals. In early 2024, 14 people, including Koldo García, were arrested.

Management Solutions was a shell company based in Zaragoza, inexplicably awarded three large government contracts to supply masks, despite lacking any experience in importing medical supplies or moving goods from China. It also offered higher prices than other bidders.

The central government awarded the company €40.5 million across three contracts: €24.2 million from the State Ports Authority, €12.5 million from ADIF, and €3.48 million from the Ministry of the Interior, all thanks to Ábalos. Subsequently, the company secured an additional €16 million in contracts from two PSOE-governed regional governments, the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands, through García’s recommendation.

An audit by the Ministry of Transport under Óscar Puente determined that only 5 million of the 13 million masks theoretically purchased from Management Solutions were distributed. The whereabouts of the rest are unknown, but it is suspected they may have been resold on the black market or never delivered at all. In the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands, the delivered masks did not match those contracted or were defective.

Thanks to February’s ‘Delorme operation’, it was revealed that the supposed leader of the scheme was Víctor de Aldama, who had accomplices in the Ministry of Transport, including García and several members of the Civil Guard who protected the gang. Some of them were even tipped off about the investigation, and García met with the deputy director of the Civil Guard 40 days before his arrest. The case is currently being handled by Madrid’s National Court, with Judge Ismael Moreno presiding. A recent report by UCO points directly to Ábalos, who, due to his status as a deputy, will likely be indicted in the Supreme Court.

Government scandals related to mask purchases during the pandemic are not limited to Management Solutions. The largest case, still under investigation in Madrid’s courts, is known as the ‘Travis case’, involving €196 million given to a little-known Hong Kong company that also failed to deliver. Three senior officials from Salvador Illa’s ministry are under investigation in a case that was initiated by a complaint from Vox.

6.- Hydrocarbons Case

This case was revealed on October 7, when police arrested Víctor de Aldama for the second time this year as part of an operation against fraud in the hydrocarbon sector. According to the investigation, handled by the National Court’s fifth chamber under Judge Santiago Pedraz, an organized scheme obtained a government license as a hydrocarbon operator and then defrauded the Treasury of €180 million in VAT.

How did they achieve this? Mainly through Ábalos, who allegedly received a villa in Cádiz, favors for his mistress, and cash in return. The problem is that issuing such a license does not fall under the Ministry of Transport’s purview, but rather the Ministries of Ecological Transition and Industry, implicating both Teresa Ribera and Reyes Maroto.

7.- Jésica Case

As THE OBJECTIVE has reported in recent months, the minister had an extramarital affair with a dentistry student named Jésica Rodríguez. This would not be of public interest were it not for the fact that Ábalos took her on many of his official trips, especially abroad, and arranged jobs for her at two public companies under his ministry’s jurisdiction. According to exclusive messages published by THE OBJECTIVE, Jésica requested a daily stipend of around €1,500 for accompanying the minister.

A recent report by UCO to the court also revealed that the hydrocarbon scheme paid Jésica’s rent for a luxury apartment in Madrid for three and a half years, totaling €88,000.

Between her salary from public companies, travel stipends, and rent payments, Jésica received up to €6,000 per month during her «special relationship» (UCO’s words) with the minister.

8.- PSOE Case

In parallel to the hydrocarbon case, THE OBJECTIVE published exclusive testimonies from two businessmen who were partners with Víctor de Aldama in the scheme to obtain a government license. Both requested anonymity, but the newspaper verified their identities and confirmed they worked with Aldama. Both tell the same story, and one even presented it on camera, though with altered voice and image.

The businessman’s account is clear. Aldama supposedly paid €600,000 to obtain the hydrocarbon license, with payments made in cash and transfers. On two occasions, Aldama asked this businessman to personally deliver a bag of cash to PSOE headquarters on Ferraz Street. Each time, the delivery was €45,000 in October 2020.

It is unclear whether the money was for PSOE or for Ábalos, who was then the party’s Secretary of Organization. However, the Popular Party has filed a lawsuit against PSOE in the National Court’s fifth chamber for alleged illegal financing.

This cash payment at PSOE headquarters in 2020 follows THE OBJECTIVE’s 2021 reports on Ábalos’s out-of-control expenses and his peculiar way of paying everything: with €500 bills in envelopes.

9.- Construction Companies Case

In September, THE OBJECTIVE revealed that the Civil Guard is investigating the alleged payment of illegal commissions to former minister Ábalos by several medium-sized construction companies based in the Valencia region. The case arose from emails intercepted from Koldo García and could affect at least Grupo Torrescamara and Levantina, Engineering, and Construction, which benefited from ministry contracts despite better offers being on the table.

10.- ADIF Case

While not directly related to Ábalos, as far as is known, this case deserves mention because it also centers on the Ministry of Transport, specifically the public company ADIF, which manages the country’s railway infrastructure.

According to THE OBJECTIVE in May, the president of ADIF was involved in rigging at least two contracts: one worth €20.4 million in 2022 and another worth €28 million in 2023. The article was accompanied by audio recordings in which it is clear that company scores needed to be altered «by order from above.»

As a result of this scandal, ADIF President Ángel Contreras, who had been confirmed in his position when Óscar Puente took over Transport, had to be dismissed on September 13.

Postscript: This article does not mention the cases involving Pedro Sánchez’s brother or the Attorney General, both of whom are currently facing charges, as these cases did not originate within the government.