{"id":26623,"date":"2026-05-20T04:10:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T04:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/26623\/"},"modified":"2026-05-20T04:10:16","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T04:10:16","slug":"spain-what-is-former-spanish-pm-zapatero-accused-of-inside-the-plus-ultra-case-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/26623\/","title":{"rendered":"Spain: What is former Spanish PM Zapatero accused of?: Inside the Plus Ultra case | Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spain\u2019s former prime minister Jos\u00e9 Luis Rodr\u00edguez Zapatero is under investigation<\/a> in a corruption case being handled by Spain\u2019s High Court, the Audiencia Nacional. The news made headlines on Tuesday and sparked reactions across the political spectrum. Here are the key questions about the investigation, which has been shrouded in secrecy for months.<\/p>\n

What crimes is Zapatero accused of? <\/p>\n

Zapatero is under investigation for influence peddling and related offenses in a probe into the alleged laundering of opaque funds from Venezuela, linked to the \u20ac53 million ($57.2 million) public bailout that the government granted to the airline Plus Ultra<\/a> after the pandemic.<\/p>\n

This marks the first time in Spain\u2019s democratic era that a former prime minister has been investigated in a corruption case. Judge Jos\u00e9 Luis Calama describes Zapatero as the alleged leader of \u201ca stable and hierarchical influence\u2011peddling structure\u201d whose aim was \u201cto obtain financial benefits by acting as an intermediary and exerting influence over public bodies on behalf of third parties, mainly Plus Ultra,\u201d according to the High Court.<\/p>\n

The judge estimates that Zapatero and people in his circle may have received \u20ac1.95 million ($2.11 million) in irregular commissions as part of the alleged scheme.<\/p>\n

When will the former prime minister testify?<\/p>\n

He is due to appear before Spain\u2019s High Court on June 2 at 9:00 a.m. As he is under formal investigation, he must attend with a lawyer. Like any suspect, he has the right to remain silent or to answer only his defense lawyer\u2019s questions.<\/p>\n

Has Zapatero responded to the charges?<\/p>\n

Yes, though not in court. On Tuesday, the former prime minister released a video saying he had received the High Court\u2019s notification summoning him as a suspect. He expressed his willingness to \u201ccooperate with the justice system\u201d and insisted that \u201call\u201d his public and private activity \u201chas always been carried out with full respect for the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have never owned a company, either directly or through third parties, in Spain or abroad, nor have I taken part in any such operation,\u201d he stressed.<\/p>\n

Back in March, Zapatero denied any wrongdoing related to the airline during a Senate inquiry into the so\u2011called Koldo case. He attended at the request of the conservative Popular Party (PP), which wanted to question him about his relationship with businessman Julio Mart\u00ednez Mart\u00ednez, who was already under investigation at the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have never received any commission from Plus Ultra,\u201d he said. According to Zapatero, he was only engaged as a consultant for the firm An\u00e1lisis Relevante and was unaware that the company also worked for the airline.<\/p>\n

Did police search Zapatero\u2019s office?<\/p>\n

Yes. Acting on a judge\u2019s orders, officers from Spain\u2019s Economic and Fiscal Crime Unit (UDEF) searched the former prime minister\u2019s office on Tuesday, located on Ferraz Street in Madrid.<\/p>\n

They also searched the headquarters of his daughters\u2019 marketing and communications agency, Whatthefav, as well as two other companies linked to the case. Zapatero acknowledged in the Senate that he introduced his daughters to An\u00e1lisis Relevante so they could provide communications and marketing services.<\/p>\n

\"\"Ferraz Street, where former prime minister Zapatero’s office is located.
\nJaime VillanuevaWhat is being investigated in this case?<\/p>\n

Judge Jos\u00e9 Luis Calama, who heads Investigative Court No. 4 at Spain\u2019s National Court, is examining the alleged \u201cmisuse\u201d of the \u20ac53 million bailout that the Spanish government granted in March 2021 to the Spanish\u2011Venezuelan airline Plus Ultra to cover pandemic\u2011related losses.<\/p>\n

The judge is trying to determine whether the alleged network used shell companies, fabricated documents, and opaque financial channels \u201cto exert illegal influence, conceal the origin and destination of the funds, and obtain financial benefits for both third parties and the network itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

When did the investigation begin?<\/p>\n

The case dates back to 2024, when Spain\u2019s Anti\u2011Corruption Attorney General\u2019s Office received two international cooperation requests aimed at dismantling a \u201ccriminal organization\u201d allegedly involved in laundering opaque funds from Venezuela.<\/p>\n

Authorities in France and Switzerland requested searches of properties in Madrid, Tenerife, and Mallorca. According to documents seen by EL PA\u00cdS, international investigators warned that Venezuelan public officials had illegally diverted \u201cvery large sums\u201d to Europe. The funds allegedly came from government food programs (CLAP\u2014Local Committees for Supply and Production) and gold sales. Investigators suspect the Plus Ultra bailout may have been used to help launder that money.<\/p>\n

Before the High Court and anti\u2011corruption prosecutors took up the case, a Madrid court had already opened an investigation in 2021 into the airline\u2019s bailout following a complaint by the group Manos Limpias. That case was later dropped due to a procedural error \u2014 the judge failed to extend the investigation deadline in time. Judge Calama later requested all the material gathered in that earlier case.<\/p>\n

Who else is under investigation?<\/p>\n

Following arrests carried out by the UDEF police unit on December 11, it remains unclear how many suspects are involved. Those known to be under investigation include:<\/p>\n

Julio Mart\u00ednez Sola, chairman of Plus UltraRoberto Roselli, the airline\u2019s CEOSantiago Fern\u00e1ndez Lena, the company\u2019s lawyerAnother Madrid\u2011based lawyerLuis Felipe Baca, a Peruvian bankerJulio Mart\u00ednez Mart\u00ednez, an Alicante\u2011based businessmanFormer prime minister Jos\u00e9 Luis Rodr\u00edguez ZapateroAre companies also under investigation?<\/p>\n

Yes. The main focus is on the consulting firm An\u00e1lisis Relevante SL, whose sole director is Mart\u00ednez Mart\u00ednez. The judge says the company transferred \u20ac490,780 ($530,000) to Zapatero and \u20ac239,755 ($259,000) to Whathefav, the marketing and communications firm owned by Zapatero\u2019s daughters.<\/p>\n

According to the ruling, most of the funds received by An\u00e1lisis Relevante\u2014 from Plus Ultra as well as Inteligencia Prospectiva, Softgestor, and Grupo Aldesa \u2014 ended up in the former prime minister\u2019s circle.<\/p>\n

The investigation also highlights the alleged use of shell companies such as Calet\u00f3n Consultores and Summer Wind, which authorities say were used to route payments through intermediaries and front men, helping to obscure the origin and destination of the funds.<\/p>\n

The judge is also looking into an offshore company in the United Arab Emirates that the network allegedly set up at Zapatero\u2019s direction.<\/p>\n

\"\"Businessman Julio Mart\u00ednez.Jaime VillanuevaWho is Julio Mart\u00ednez Mart\u00ednez?<\/p>\n

He is a businessman from the Spanish city of Alicante who, in addition to being the sole director of the consulting firm at the center of the case, is also a running partner and friend of Zapatero. He is listed as a director of another company that signed a contract with Plus Ultra to receive 1% of the bailout; this appears to be the same company linked to the Dubai offshore entity<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The former prime minister has not distanced himself from Mart\u00ednez Mart\u00ednez, although he said that, \u201cas a precaution,\u201d he has not been in contact with him since the businessman was arrested by police. \u201cHe is my friend, and I reiterate that he never asked me for anything improper,\u201d Zapatero said during his appearance before the Senate, called at the request of the Popular Party, which sought to question him about his relationship with Mart\u00ednez, who was already under investigation in the Plus Ultra case at the time.<\/p>\n

What happens next?<\/p>\n

Judge Calama and prosecutors will continue investigating the alleged corruption network. Until now, the case had been under seal. However, it has now emerged that the judge has decided to lift that seal, meaning defense lawyers will be able to access all the evidence in the case \u2014 from international cooperation requests to material seized during the December searches.<\/p>\n

Sign up for our weekly newsletter<\/a> to get more English-language news coverage from EL PA\u00cdS USA Edition<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Spain\u2019s former prime minister Jos\u00e9 Luis Rodr\u00edguez Zapatero is under investigation in a corruption case being handled by…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":26624,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[13614,13647,3207,824,17,564],"class_list":["post-26623","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-spain","tag-jose-luis-rodriguez-zapatero","tag-plus-ultra","tag-pp","tag-psoe","tag-spain","tag-venezuela"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26623","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26623"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26623\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26624"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26623"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26623"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26623"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}