Overview
- Spain’s high court resumes hearings Monday with a dense witness list that includes Patricia Úriz, the ex‑wife of Koldo García, and businessman Claudio Rivas, shifting the focus from personal ties to how the mask deals were made.
- The court is examining two contracts awarded during the pandemic to Soluciones de Gestión, linked to Víctor de Aldama, worth €24 million for 8 million masks at Puertos del Estado and €12 million for 5 million masks at Adif, with past and current Adif and Puertos chiefs due to testify this week.
- The Anti‑Corruption Prosecutor asks for 24 years in prison for former minister José Luis Ábalos, 19 and a half years for García, and seven years for Aldama, alleging they took part in a criminal organization.
- Testimony last week introduced claims of cash deliveries to PSOE headquarters on Madrid’s Ferraz street, with witness Carmen Pano saying she carried €90,000 on Aldama’s orders, a point Aldama and Rivas dispute.
- The case is feeding political fallout as the PP drives Senate inquiries into pandemic rescues by the state holding company SEPI, with former finance minister María Jesús Montero called to testify on Monday the 20th about decisions such as the Plus Ultra bailout.