Hazte Oír has asked that former ministers María Jesús Montero and José Luis Escrivá appear as witnesses in the ongoing Plus Ultra inquiry.
Private prosecutors involved in the investigation into the rescue package granted to airline Plus Ultra have requested new investigative measures before Spain’s National Court, including the appearance of several former senior officials from Pedro Sánchez’s government as witnesses. The organization Hazte Oír specifically asked the court to summon former Finance Minister María Jesús Montero and former Social Security Minister José Luis Escrivá, in a case that also involves former Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.
The request forms part of an extensive filing submitted to the judge overseeing the so-called Plus Ultra case, which examines alleged offenses linked to the allocation of €53 million in public aid to the airline through the Fund for the Support of Strategic Companies (FASEE). Investigators are examining possible crimes including influence peddling, money laundering, criminal organization, and document falsification.
Hazte Oír argues that Montero’s testimony is relevant in order to clarify the role played by the Finance Ministry during the approval process for the bailout and to determine whether internal reports questioned the financial viability of the operation. The organization also wants to know whether the government internally debated the legality or economic suitability of the state aid granted to the airline.
Regarding José Luis Escrivá, the request stems from a meeting said to have taken place in September 2020 between the then minister and José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. Documents included in the investigation indicate that the meeting was carefully tracked by figures within the ministerial circle engaged in the bailout process. Additional reports have mentioned intercepted communications and encounters involving Zapatero, Escrivá, and officials associated with the SEPI during the talks surrounding the rescue package.
The filing also seeks testimony from additional public officials tied to SEPI and the Transport Ministry, among them former Secretary of State Pedro Saura, whom the private prosecutors associate with meetings held with Plus Ultra executives shortly before the government’s rescue fund was activated.
The private prosecutors have also asked the judge to obtain further documentation, including visitor logs from the Moncloa Palace and the Transport Ministry between 2020 and 2026, as well as records concerning Zapatero’s international travel since 2017, with particular focus on trips to Venezuela.
The judicial probe has reached an especially delicate phase after the judge called José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero to appear on June 2, while Vox has sought precautionary actions against the former prime minister, requesting his passport be revoked and that he be barred from leaving Spain due to alleged risks of flight and possible evidence tampering.
The Plus Ultra case centers on the circumstances surrounding the government-approved rescue of the airline in March 2021 during the pandemic crisis. The €53 million bailout sparked political and judicial controversy from the outset due to doubts about the airline’s financial situation and its business connections to Venezuela.
Source from OKDIARIO https://okdiario.com/espana/acusaciones-populares-piden-que-cite-ex-ministros-montero-escriva-caso-zapatero-16983866
