(Madrid) The wife of the Spanish prime minister filed a complaint Friday against the judge investigating her for alleged corruption and influence peddling, following in the footsteps of her husband, socialist Pedro Sánchez.
Begoña Gómez’s defense has filed a complaint in Madrid against Judge Juan Carlos Peinado, claiming that he had “adopted arbitrary and manifestly unjust judicial decisions” against her in the context of an “unusual, erratic” investigation, according to the document to which AFP had access.
The Prime Minister’s wife also accuses him of having broken the secrecy of the investigation since, while it was not yet known to the general public, the Madrid justice system sent press releases on the case and some media published elements from the file.
On Tuesday, Pedro Sánchez filed a complaint against the same judge who had summoned him as a witness against his wife during a hearing held at the Moncloa Palace, the official residence of the head of government.
He accused the judge of not respecting his status as head of government by hearing him face-to-face, instead of letting him testify in writing, as he had requested. A decision which, according to him, constitutes acts of “prevarication”, that is to say, breaches of the obligations of an office.
Begoña Gómez, who runs a master’s degree in management at the Complutense University of Madrid, is suspected of using her husband’s position in her professional relationships – particularly with Juan Carlos Barrabés, a Spanish businessman.
Juan Carlos Peinado, 69, a judge known for leading controversial investigations in the past, opened the investigation in April after a complaint from Manos Limpias (“Clean Hands”), a group close to the far right, which said it was based on press articles.
The magistrate decided to continue his investigation despite two reports from the Civil Guard that concluded that there were no offences and the request for the case to be shelved by the public prosecutor at the end of April. During their hearings, both Pedro Sánchez and Begoña Gómez had asserted their right to remain silent.
The prime minister, who has consistently defended his wife’s innocence and believes that the case is part of a campaign by the right and the far right aimed at harming his left-wing government, said on Wednesday that it was a “non-case, rooted in the frustration and impotence of the opposition, which has given up on the legitimate battle of ideas.”
The opposition is demanding the resignation of the prime minister and the calling of new elections.