Spanish Prime Minister's Wife Accused of Corruption

Begona Gomez, the wife of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, has been charged with embezzlement, exercising illegal influence, corruption in business dealings and misuse of funds, at the end of a two-year investigation by a judge in Madrid.

Gomez, 55, is accused of using her influence as the wife of the socialist prime minister to secure and manage a post at Madrid's Complutense University, as well as using public resources and personal connections to advance her private interests.

Judge Juan Carlos Peinado has also filed charges against Gomez's personal assistant, Cristina Alvarez, and a businessman, Juan Carlos Barrabes, in connection with the case.

All of the accused have denied any wrongdoing.

The investigation into Gomez was prompted by a complaint filed by Manos Limpias (Clean Hands), an organization that presents itself as a trade union, with links to the far right and a history of using the courts to prosecute those it considers a threat to Spain's democratic interests.

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Sanchez has repeatedly dismissed the case against his wife as baseless and politically motivated. The prime minister has accused his political and media opponents of persecuting his family and has openly questioned the impartiality of some members of the judiciary.

In his 39-page ruling, Peinado suggested that "several public decisions favorable to (the university post) have been made since Gomez's husband became general secretary of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party and, above all, since he became prime minister."

The judge also said there was evidence of behavior at the Moncloa palace - the prime minister's office and official residence - that "seems more consistent with absolutist regimes".

The decision to formally charge Gomez comes at a tense time for Sanchez, as his younger brother, David, is due to go on trial next month on charges of exerting undue influence. According to another complaint by Manos Limpias, David Sanchez took a job created specifically for him by the southwestern city council of Badajoz in July 2017, when his brother was national leader of the Socialist party. He denies the charges.

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Meanwhile, two senior former officials in Sanchez's government are on trial on suspicion of corruption. The prime minister's former right-hand man, former transport minister Jose Luis Abalos, is accused, along with his former aide Koldo Garcia and businessman Victor de Aldama, of taking bribes in public contracts for sanitary equipment during the Covid pandemic. 

Abalos and Garcia, who deny all charges, face sentences of 24 and 19 years in prison respectively, while Aldama, who has already admitted his participation in the alleged scheme, faces a sentence of seven years.