Overview
- The investigating judge in Catarroja, Nuria Ruiz Tobarra, issued an order on Jan. 29, 2026 denying a request to examine the ‘Emergencias’ group chat in the 2024 Valencia flood case.
- The ruling cites that José Manuel Cuenca, a witness, consented solely to analysis of his direct exchanges with specified officials on Oct. 29, 2024 about the emergency, which does not extend to group communications.
- The denied request had been advanced by the acusación popular represented by Mai Més, which sought to broaden the digital probe beyond the scope Cuenca authorized.
- The group included Cuenca, the accused former regional minister Salomé Pradas, and former Emergencies official Emilio Argüeso, but the judge noted Spanish procedure permits accessing a witness’s communications only on a voluntary basis.
- WhatsApp messages already filed by Pradas—such as “Salo, de confinar nada”—remain in the case record and clash with Cuenca’s testimony that he issued no operational orders, a dispute compounded by his return of a formatted phone.