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Former Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero is under investigation for influence peddling and potential money laundering in connection with a government airline bailout, a court spokesperson confirmed to OCCRP Tuesday.
Zapatero, a socialist who led the country from 2004 to 2011, has been summoned to testify before Spain’s National Court on June 2. The summons makes him the first Spanish prime minister since the country’s return to democracy to face a formal corruption probe.
The accusation stems from an investigation into the alleged misuse of 53 million euros ($61.52 million) spent by the Spanish government for the financial bailout of the airline Plus Ultra.
The National Court, which specializes in organized crime and major corruption cases, launched the investigation after receiving judicial requests from authorities in France and Switzerland indicating the rescue funds were likely used to launder money embezzled from Venezuela.
Court documents accuse Zapatero of being the alleged leader of “a stable and hierarchical influence-peddling structure” whose purpose was “to obtain economic benefits through intermediation and the exercise of influence before public bodies in favor of third parties.”
According to the presiding judge, José Luis Calama, the scheme involved shell companies, falsified documents, and opaque financial channels “to exert illicit influence, conceal the origin and destination of funds, and obtain economic benefits for third parties and the network itself.”
The judge stated that the investigation confirmed the existence of “an organized network of illicit influence peddling, structurally organized and led by…Zapatero,” who allegedly used his personal contacts and access to high-ranking government officials to benefit third parties seeking favorable decisions.
The influence peddling was not aimed at securing general favorable treatment, Calama added, but was specifically directed at achieving a specific administrative resolution: the approval and disbursement of the public aid for Plus Ultra through a state Solvency Support Fund established after the COVID-19 pandemic.
A timeline of meetings, contacts, and communications—including early access to privileged information about the imminent granting bailout—demonstrates the network acted with the explicit intent to sway the government’s decision, according to the judge.
The investigation also uncovered financial kickbacks channeled through a corporate network controlled by Julio Martínez Martínez, a personal friend of the former prime minister and owner of the company Analisis Relevante. The funds were allegedly moved via ad hoc consulting contracts and direct and indirect payments from Plus Ultra and related companies.
Zapatero allegedly received 600.000 euros ($696,169) for consulting work provided to Analisis Relevante. Police suspect a portion of the funds paid to the former prime minister was routed through his daughter's company, Whathefav SL.
According to Calama, this provides significant evidence of a direct link between the influence peddling and the intended financial gain. The use of shell companies, such as Caletón Consultores and Summer Wind, to triangulate payments using frontmen reinforces the existence of a structure designed to hide the money trail, the judge added.
Spanish media reported that economic crime police were actively searching the former prime minister’s office, as well as the Whathefav SL headquarters.
Zapatero released a video statement denying the accusations against him.
“All my public and private activities have always been conducted with absolute respect for the law,” he said and added that his income and compensation have always been declared “with absolute transparency and legality.”
“I have never conducted any business with any public administration or the public sector regarding the Plus Ultra bailout, nor with any other administration,” he said.
Current Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez quickly rallied to his defense, sending a message to the Socialist Party’s Federal Executive Committee that urged members to "defend the good name" of his predecessor.
Government spokesperson Elma Saiz also defended Zapatero's political legacy and called for his presumption of innocence to be respected. Meanwhile, the Socialist Party formally denounced the allegations, describing the situation as a “judicial persecution” targeting both the former leader and the broader organization.
