Mazón's bodyguards did not accompany him to lunch because he ordered them not to.

ValenciaTwo of the three bodyguards who accompanied former Valencian president Carlos Mazón on the day of the DANA storm have testified to the judge in the case that the former head of the Valencian government asked his security team not to accompany him to the El Ventorro restaurant, where the PP politician had lunch for almost four hours with journalist Maribel Vilaplana. They also detailed that the conservative leader returned to the Palau de la Generalitat around 7:50 p.m., from where he went to the Emergency Center. This information was provided to ARA by sources present during their testimony.

The bodyguards also stated that Mazón had an event in the morning, after which he returned to the Palau de la Generalitat around 11:00 a.m. After lunch, around 7:15 p.m., the security team was notified that the president needed to be picked up to go to the Cecopio (the regional security center). "Around 7:50 p.m., Mazón arrived. He was alone. He went up to his office and said, 'I'll be right back and we'll leave.'" "This whole process was very quick, and they left the Palau a few minutes before 8:00 p.m.," they added. The witnesses also confirmed that advisor Josep Lanuza and press officer Maite Gómez accompanied the former head of the Consell (the regional government) on the journey.

Security personnel detailed that the bodyguards had known about the meal since the previous day and that at no point did they hear anything about a possible cancellation due to the severe weather conditions affecting the Valencian Community since early morning, with numerous towns flooded. They also explained that the bodyguards did not know with whom Mazón was going to have lunch or the purpose of the meeting. They did confirm, however, that it was unusual for Mazón to forgo security services before arriving at the restaurant, but that it was not the first time.