Overview
- The Audiencia Provincial de Badajoz issued a unanimous 377‑page judgment that on Tuesday convicted David Sánchez Pérez‑Castejón of cooperation in administrative prevarication and imposed nine years of inhabilitación especial for public employment.
- The court concluded the actionable conduct was a 2022 change that reshaped the post to fit his operatic projects, while the 2017 creation and initial appointment were declared time‑barred and not the basis for the conviction.
- No prison terms were handed down and the prosecution never charged the case; seven private 'acusaciones populares' took the case to trial after the Fiscalía argued for acquittal.
- Opposition parties immediately demanded the government resign and call elections while some of the prime minister’s allies and partners called the penalty disproportionate, increasing short‑term political pressure on the executive.
- The nine‑year inhabilitación prevents any public‑sector job, appointment or participation in selection processes and the sentence can be appealed to the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Extremadura within ten days, leaving the final legal outcome pending.