Overview
- The Spanish Supreme Court on Monday unanimously sentenced former transport minister José Luis Ábalos to 24 years and three months in prison for leading an organized criminal scheme tied to pandemic mask procurement, with his former aide Koldo García also convicted.
- A Madrid judge this weekend ordered Begoña Gómez, the wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, to face an oral jury trial and imposed measures including surrendering her passport, a ban on leaving Spain, and biweekly court signings.
- Those judicial moves have intensified political pressure on Sánchez and the PSOE, who face parliamentary questioning this Wednesday and a party committee meeting on Saturday as allies and rivals demand explanations and reforms.
- In Argentina, media‑released videos showing Jesica Cirio with large bundles of US dollars led prosecutors to request copies, execute two court‑ordered raids on June 21 that recovered no devices, and schedule journalist Diego Suárez to testify on June 25.
- Both cases show investigators advancing by seeking audiovisual evidence, carrying out forensic patrimonial analyses that have suffered delays, and relying on cooperation deals that are shaping punishments and political fallout, with the Aldama cooperation deal in Spain already a flashpoint.