Zapatero does not dissipate doubts about his case
BarcelonaThe PSOE was holding its breath following the indictment of former president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero this Wednesday, and while it is true that the worst imaginable scenario, which was pre-trial detention, did not occur, and the judge did not even order his passport to be revoked, doubts about his case remain the same. This is partly also due to the former president's defense strategy, which has requested more time to explain the origin of the jewelry found in his office – valued at 1.3 million euros – and has also refused to answer about the mobile phone messages of the main shareholder of the company Plus Ultra, Rodolfo Reyes, which are the trigger for the investigation, because his defense is trying to invalidate the evidence. At the end of his statement, the judge made it clear that the testimony had not managed to "discredit the indications" against him, although he admitted that the investigation is in an "embryonic" phase.
Upon leaving the courts, Zapatero proclaimed his innocence and asked for trust in him. "I will not disappoint you," he insisted. Thus, the former president combines a more political defense in his speeches with a more technical one within the court, focused on invalidating the evidence that could compromise him the most, such as Reyes's mobile phone, which the American authorities handed over to the Spanish ones last year, when it had already been in their possession for five years. This has caused suspicions to skyrocket about a possible political interest from the United States against Zapatero, as well as legal doubts about the validity of the mobile phone as evidence in Spain, since it was confiscated without judicial authorization.
Regarding the jewelry, there is no official explanation yet, although the program
Regarding the jewels, there is still no official explanation, although the TVE program Mañaneros explained from sources close to the former president that it is a gift from the then king of Saudi Arabia during a state visit he made to Spain in June 2007. If this were the case and could be proven, Zapatero would be exempt from any crime, as there would be no smuggling or tax offense; in the latter case, because it would have expired. However, Zapatero's image would be equally tarnished, because the code of good governance of the time already warned that public officials could not keep valuable gifts, which had to be handed over to National Heritage. This, of course, if we accept a version that has not yet been publicly confirmed or documentarily proven.
