Peinado sends the entire case against Begoña Gómez to a jury, considering Sánchez to be "fundamental."

MadridJudge Juan Carlos Peinado wants to send the entire remainder of the Begoña Gómez case to a jury. The investigating judge issued a new order this Thursday summoning the wife of the Spanish president, businessman Juan Carlos Barrabés, and Moncloa aide Cristina Álvarez to appear in court next Monday at 5:30 p.m., as he did with the first part that was being referred to a jury. However, those involved, They sent their lawyers. "That those under investigation be duly summoned and made aware that they must necessarily appear with their lawyer," Peinado writes, after last Saturday's standoff.

In the ruling justifying the popular jury for the entire case, the judge emphasizes that the "relationship with the current president of the Spanish government," Pedro Sánchez, is "fundamental" in the commission of the various crimes in the case that he wants to try simultaneously because he considers them "connected" due to the head of government: misappropriation, embezzlement, private business. "Without that link with the current president of the government, it would be difficult for her and the other two investigated to carry out the [criminal] conduct," Peinado concludes.

What the judge initially separated from the rest of the case was Álvarez's hiring at the Moncloa to carry out private tasks for Gómez. Now he wants to send the entire case to a jury for the four offenses. The judge's decision is surprising because some of these offenses are not within the jurisdiction of a jury. In fact, the law establishes that only influence peddling (and embezzlement, for which he had already sent the garment separated by this procedure) are. Furthermore, experts consulted by ARA point out that, when two or more offenses are involved, the proceedings continue to a professional court due to the complexity of the case.

Why does the judge want to put Gómez in the dock?

The main case hinges on several issues. One of them is linked to the chair that Gómez led with Barrabés at the Complutense University of Madrid and the use of software that some companies allegedly funded. It is suspected that the wife of the head of the State's executive branch appropriated this tool, which was originally intended for the university. But Gómez's involvement in the awarding of public contracts for Red.es to Barrabés' companies is also being investigated.

Specifically, a report by state auditors for the European Public Prosecutor's Office—which is investigating two of the suspicious contracts—released this Monday emphasized that, in those awards, the contracting committee took these letters—not specifically those from Begoña Gómez—into account when subjectively assessing the bids. The document stated that there had been an "unfair" and "illegal" increase in the ratings for the Temporary Business Union (UTE) led by Barrabés.