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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is under pressure after his former transport minister, José Luis Ábalos, was sentenced to 24 years in prison for corruption on Monday.
Spain’s Supreme Court found the former minister guilty of rigging public contracts for face masks and other medical supplies in exchange for kickbacks at the height of the Covid pandemic. He was convicted of bribery, embezzlement, influence peddling, and membership of a criminal organization, while his former adviser, Koldo García, recieved a 19-year sentence for his role in the scheme.
Businessman Victor de Aldama recieved a suspended a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence and €3.7 million fine after cooperating with prosecutors and providing key documents detailing the inner workings of the corruption scheme. He also alleged that some of the profits he helped embezzle had been funneled to the Socialist Party, but failed to provide evidence to support his claims.
Criticizing the court’s leniency with Aldama, Transport Minister Óscar Puente said society should take note of the ruling. “See, kids? If you commit crimes but then behave and ‘cooperate,’ forgiveness will come through,” he wrote in a post on X. “You won’t even go to prison.”
